Elias Abuelazam, 34, stood shackled in a Genesee County Courtroom today, as one of his alleged victims, Richard Booker, testified that Abuelazam stabbed him on July 19. The stabbing, Booker said, occurred after he stopped to help Abuelazam open the hood of his truck, The Associated Press reported.
Erik S. Lesser, AP
Elias Abuelazam, 33, shown at an extradition hearing in Atlanta in August, was ordered Friday to stand trial in an attempted murder in Michigan.
Following Booker's testimony, the judge determined there is enough probable cause in the case to send Abuelazam to trial. He will be formally arraigned in the case on Nov. 22.
Abuelazam was extradited from Atlanta in August, after he was arrested while attempting to board a flight to Israel.
Abuelazam is a Christian Arab from the city of Ramla, east of Tel Aviv. He is suspected of committing 14 attacks on in Michigan, Ohio and Virginia, killing five in Michigan. To date, he has only been charged with three counts of murder and five counts of attempted murder in Michigan, and an attempted murder in Ohio.
A second hearing, in the fatal stabbing of Frank Kellybrew, also began today. Authorities allege Abuelazam murdered Kellybrew on July 30, after the victim purchased items from a convenience store. The victim's DNA was found on Abuelazam's shoes, police said.
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It was Kellybrew's death that convinced police that a serial killer was likely on the loose, the AP reported. The stabbing "was something that got law enforcement to say, 'Hey, we've got something here,' " Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton said recently, according to the AP. "That one was out in Flint Township. Some of the others had been in the city. ... It became apparent what we had."
The preliminary exam in Kellybrew's homicide is set to continue on Dec. 3, The Detroit Free Press reported.
Abuelazam is being held in isolation at the Genesee County Jail. If convicted, he faces a possible sentence of life in prison without parole.