A possible targeted attack was suspected by investigators after Eunice Dwumfour, a New Jersey councilwoman of Ghanaian heritage, was fatally shot on February 1 outside her house. Authorities finally detained a man on Tuesday in relation to her slaying, four months after the terrible occurrence.
Rashid Ali Bynum, 28, the suspect, was apprehended in Virginia, according to ABC7 New York. According to the police, Bynum and the woman were acquainted through a church she had previously belonged to. Dwumfour was a member of the Champion Royal Assembly Church in Newark, which is also connected to the church, Fire Congress Fellowship (FCF).
“That is something that is vexing the family as we speak right now,” John Wisniewski, the attorney for Dwumfour’s family, said. Middlesex County Prosecutor, Yolanda Ciccone, also said that though the motive for the murder is unclear at this time, Bynum was linked to the murder through surveillance footage, as he was captured fleeing the scene in the wake of the shooting.
Records obtained from the suspect’s phone also showed he traveled to New Jersey from Virginia at the time Dwumfour was killed, Ciccone said. His search history also revealed he inquired about the type of ammunition that best suits his handgun.
“The murder has shaken the community, and no arrest will bring back the late councilwoman,” Ciccone said.
Bynum faces a slew of charges including first-degree Murder, second-degree Unlawful Possession of a Handgun, and second-degree Possession of a Handgun for an Unlawful Purpose, ABC7 New York reported.
