Police: Community service officer killed over grass clippings
Sarosh, neighbor had recurring disputes
An off-duty community service officer with the Milwaukee Police Department was shot and killed by his nextdoor neighbor while calmly trying to complain to him about grass clippings spilling over the property line, according to charges filed Wednesday.
Prosecutors charged Mohammed Afzal, 65, with first-degree reckless homicide Wednesday, two days after his neighbor, Naeem Sarosh, 35, was shot and killed just outside his home on the 4800 block of South 22nd Street.
The shooting jolted city officials and neighbors. Speaking at the scene Monday,
Acting Chief Michael Brunson called Sarosh a beloved and respected employee. Mayor Tom Barrett said the senseless act “should disturb us all.”
Sarosh worked as a community service officer for the last four years. Those officers are not sworn and respond unarmed to non-emergency calls and assist officers with other tasks.
For some reason, unbeknownst to both of their families, Afzal did not like Sarosh, who spent several years living next to each other and had recurring disputes, according to the criminal complaint. The families otherwise got along fine.
On Monday evening, after Afzal finished mowing his lawn, Sarosh walked over to Afzal’s side door to discuss some grass clippings that were left on his side of the property, according to a criminal complaint.
The interaction was caught on a camera affixed to Afzal’s home, the complaint said. After knocking, Sarosh turns away from the door and walks back to his side of the property and awaits Afzal’s answer.
The two then appear to have a relaxed conversation, the complaint said. Sarosh stands with his hands in his pockets, leaning slightly backward and makes no sudden movements. He motions toward the grass as he speaks while Afzal stands in the door threshold.
But then Afzal suddenly raises a gun and fires at Sarosh, who turns and runs back toward his home. Afzal fires a second time, striking Sarosh in the back.
He collapsed in the doorway to his home, where police found him.
Afzal admitted to his actions during police interviews, the complaint said. He said he came to the door already carrying his gun and decided to fire it because Sarosh had his hands in his pockets, and Afzal thought he may have a weapon.
Afzal told police that after shooting his neighbor, he went back inside his home to change his clothes, knowing police would be coming for him.
Another neighbor, Nicole Santiago, told the Journal Sentinel that Sarosh was “an outstanding member of the community” with a wife and two daughters. Despite living in the neighborhood for decades, Afzal, she said, was not well known to her and others.