A 28-year-old man, Rashid Ali Bynum, has been arrested for the murder of Eunice Dwumfour, a Republican councilwoman in New Jersey, United States.
Eunice Dwumfour, who was fatally shot outside her home in February 2023, was a respected member of the Sayreville Borough Council in New Jersey.
She was the wife of a Nigerian pastor, Eze Kings Akwue, who is based in Abuja and hails from Anambra State. The couple got married in Abuja on November 24, 2022.
On February 1, 2023, Dwumfour, a 30-year-old mom and church leader, was shot multiple times while she was in her SUV outside her townhouse.
Middlesex County Prosecutor, Yolanda Ciccone announced Bynum’s arrest on Tuesday morning, May 31, charging him with first-degree murder and two second-degree handgun offenses.
According to authorities, Bynu was known to Dwumfour through their church affiliation.
Investigators discovered that Bynum’s contact name in Dwumfour’s phone was “FCF,” likely representing the “Fire Congress Fellowship,” which was associated with the Champion Royal Assembly, the church the councilwoman attended.
Ciccone revealed that Bynum had conducted online searches about the Champion Royal Assembly church and the Sayreville area before the incident.
Additionally, he had searched for information regarding compatible magazines for a specific handgun.
Bynum’s phone records placed him in New Jersey at the time of the murder, matching the description provided by witnesses at the scene.
The motive behind the crime has not been disclosed, and officials declined to comment on it during the news conference. The case is described as “complex and extensive.”
Family lawyer, John Wisniewski stated that Dwumfour’s loved ones have experienced a whirlwind of emotions in the past few months.
While they are relieved that an arrest has been made, they are left with unanswered questions about Bynum’s connection to their daughter and his motivations.
“Bynum is not a name or a face that they’re familiar with,” Wisniewski said, and the family is “struggling for understanding what this man’s connection to their daughter was, what was his thinking.”
Eunice Dwumfour, known for her role as a business analyst and part-time emergency medical technician, was elected to the Sayreville Borough Council in 2021, defeating a Democratic incumbent.
During the press conference, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin acknowledged the pain Dwumfour’s family has endured and expressed hope that the arrest would bring a sense of justice and initiate the healing process.
“There are no words that can be said to you to make you whole. I did not know Eunice. I wish I had. But I know that she was a public servant.”
“I hope that today is the beginning of a healing process, and also the beginning of a sense of justice,” General Matthew Platkin said.
KanyiDaily had also reported how Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) arrested a Nigerian man, Charles Onus, for allegedly diverting $800,000 into prepaid debit cards in the United States.
