Sayreville councilwoman's accused killer to make first NJ court appearance next week

Suzanne Russell, MyCentralJersey.com
·2 min read

SAYREVILLE - The Virginia man charged with the shooting death of Sayreville Councilwoman Eunice Dwumfour is scheduled to appear before a judge next week to determine if he will remain in jail until his trial.

Rashid Ali Bynum, 29, of Portsmouth, Virginia, who was extradited to New Jersey last week, has a detention hearing scheduled for Aug. 11 in Superior Court, according to the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office.

Bynum is being held at the Middlesex County Adult Correction Center in North Brunswick.

Bynum, who was arrested May 30 in Chesapeake, Virginia, has been charged with Dwumfour's murder, as well as unlawful possession of a handgun and possession of a handgun for an unlawful purpose.

This undated photo, provided by the Sayreville Borough Council, shows Sayreville Councilwoman Eunice Dwumfour. The 30-year-old councilwoman was found shot to death in an SUV outside of her home, authorities said, Thursday, Feb, 2, 2023. She had been shot multiple times and was pronounced dead at the scene. (Courtesy Sayreville Borough Council via AP) ORG XMIT: NYRD408

On Feb. 1, 2023 Dwumfour, a Republican and Sayreville's first Black elected councilwoman, was shot multiple times inside her car outside her Sayreville home in the area of Check Avenue in the Parlin section of the borough. Dwumfour was pronounced dead at the scene.

After police received several 911 calls about the shooting, surveillance video captured a suspect fleeing the scene in the area of Ernston Road, and witnesses reported seeing a thin man, about 6 feet tall with ear-length braids or dreadlocks and a suspicious white Hyundai on Gondek Drive minutes before the shooting. Video footage showed a person walking from the vehicle on Gondek Drive toward Check Avenue just before the shooting.

Earlier: Man accused of killing Sayreville Councilwoman Eunice Dwumfour Googled church, guns

Court papers indicate a cell phone associated with Bynum traveled from Virginia to New Jersey and back to Virginia on the day of the murder and the phone was in the area of Gondek Drive and Ernston Road just before the shooting. The investigation also found his cell phone traveled through E-ZPass locations in Newark, Woodbridge and Linden at the same time as a white Hyundai Elantra with a Virginia license plate.

Court papers also show Bynum was listed as a contact in Dwumfour's cell phone, in association with Fire Congress Fellowship, a church she had previously been associated with.

A handgun was recovered at a Smithfield, Virginia address that Bynum apparently returned to after the shooting, according to the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office.

No motive for the killing has been announced.

Email: srussell@gannettnj.com

Suzanne Russell is a breaking news reporter for MyCentralJersey.com covering crime, courts and other mayhem. To get unlimited access, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Rashid Ali Bynum, accused of killing Sayreville councilwoman Eunice Dwumfour, to have first court hearing