The Virginia man who murdered a New Jersey GOP councilwoman has been arrested four months after the crime was committed.
Sayreville Councilman Eunice Dwumfour got shot in front of her apartment complex on February 1, upon arriving home that evening. Police investigators called the homicide a coordinated attack.
Dwumfour, 30, was pronounced dead on the scene by paramedics. Dwumfour was a new candidate having previously won her seat from a incumbent Democrat in November 2021.
Murderer Had Close Ties
At 11 a.m. Tuesday, police took 28 (now 29 as of May 31) year-old Portsmouth, Virginia resident Rashid Ali Bynum into custody.
Slain NJ Councilwoman Eunice Dwumfour’s family relieved her alleged killer Rashid Ali Bynum is in custody https://t.co/Db3ZTfWL0X pic.twitter.com/HiriFEtYnN
— New York Post (@nypost) June 1, 2023
According to police, Dynum drove up to Sayreville the evening of Dwumfour’s death, intending to murder her and then immediately flee the scene.
Both Dwumfour and Dynum knew each other from a previous church they attended: Champion Royal Assembly Church in Newark. This is part of the Fire Congress Fellowship (FCF).
Dwumfour acted on behalf of her church as a pastor on missionary trips, one involved counseling Bynum was personal issues.
Bynum himself had an extensive criminal history of allegations of fraud, forgery, and theft extending back to 2013, including firearms charges in Virginia and Maryland.
Bynum reportedly spent time in New Jersey seeking spiritual guidance that ended in 2018.
Police Investigation
Yolanda Ciccone, the Middlesex County prosecutor, said the surveillance camera caught Bynum running from the scene.
Virginia Man Arrested – Charged with First Degree Murder in Shooting Death of Republican Councilwoman Eunice Dwumfour via @gatewaypundit https://t.co/qGWqfE3qey
— The Gateway Pundit (@gatewaypundit) May 31, 2023
With assistance from the FBI, Virginia law enforcement found Bynum four months later in his Chesapeake City home. Dwumfour’s phone was used to help locate Bynum since police found his number in her contacts.
Police tracked the rented Hyundai Elantra and his phone before and after the murder. Bynum is currently being held without bail and later was arraigned on May 31.
He faces charges ranging from first-degree murder, second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun, and second-degree possession of a handgun for unlawful purposes.
He faces life in prison if convicted.
This article appeared in The Political Globe and has been published here with permission.
