Ex-Church Associate Sentenced To Life In US For Killing Nigerian Pastor’s Wife Outside Her New Jersey Home

A Virginia man who once shared a home, faith, and spiritual mission with New Jersey pastor and councilwoman Eunice Dwumfour will spend the rest of his life in prison for ending hers.

On Monday, a New Brunswick courtroom, packed with grieving family and friends, witnessed the sentencing of 31-year-old Rashid Ali Bynum, whose relationship with Dwumfour, initially formed in prayer circles, tragically escalated into violence.

Dwumfour, 30, a rising political figure in Sayreville and a devoted leader in the Nigerian-rooted Champions Royal Assembly, had recruited Bynum years earlier into her Bible study initiative, Fire Congress Fellowship.
Dwumfour had married fellow church pastor Peter Ezechukwu, a Nigerian based in Abuja, just weeks before her death.
At one point, the two lived under the same roof. But after Bynum’s ties with the church fractured, prosecutors said he returned to Dwumfour’s apartment complex on February 1, 2023, and ambushed her in her car, firing 14 shots.

The killing stunned Sayreville, where Dwumfour was not only a council member but also a newlywed—she had married another pastor in Abuja just weeks before her death.
Though prosecutors established his role in the murder, they never outlined a clear motive, leaving the congregation and community she nurtured to wrestle with the fact that a trusted church recruit became her killer.
Bynum was convicted in June after a month-long trial. His attorney, Michael Ashley, said they planned to appeal the conviction.
In June 2023, SaharaReporters reported that investigators had arrested Bynum over the allegation of gunning down a Sayreville Councilwoman and Nigerian pastor, Eunice Dwumfour, 30, in her SUV outside her home in February in New Jersey.
The suspect also matched the description of the gunman given by neighbours in Sayreville, where Dwumfour had served on the council for about a year.
She was found slain in her white SUV outside her leased townhome about four months ago, while her 11-year-old daughter heard the gunshot from inside. Her demise stunned the community.