NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (PIX11) – Emotions flared in a courtroom inside the Middlesex County Courthouse on Monday as the mother of slain Sayreville Councilwoman Eunice Dwumfour threw a water bottle in the direction of her daughter’s accused killer and was charged with a disorderly persons offense, according to officials.
The suspect, Rashid Ali Bynum, 29, pleaded not guilty to the Feb. 1 murder of Dwumfour.
“The entire family is very emotional,” said Dwumfour family attorney John Wisniewski. “This is the first time they’ve been in close proximity to the individual who’s accused of taking their daughter’s life. It was very traumatic and very upsetting for them.”
Dwumfour’s family was emotional as Bynum entered the courtroom, where his attorneys entered a plea of not guilty.
The prosecution fought to keep Bynum behind bars, after they say he brutally killed the 30-year-old Dwumfour, firing 14 shots into her car at point-blank range, then immediately fled back home to Virginia. He was arrested there in late May.
Bynum and Dwumfour shared a connection through her church community and lived under the same roof for a period of time, but the details about what, if any, further connection they had are still unknown.
“Part of her mission as a pastor in this religious organization, they ask her to essentially supervise and provide guidance to this individual as part of her religious mission, and that’s what I understand that relationship was,” said Wisniewski.
Bynum is being held in the Middlesex County Jail pending trial. He is due back in court Oct. 30.
