ZARA MALANI-LIN ABDUR-RAHEEM - 3 months (2010)/ Convicted: Father; Shamsiddin Abdur-Raheem - New Brunswick NJ

EAST ORANGE -- What started as a domestic dispute may have ended in
tragedy after a 21-year-old Galloway Township man told police he threw
his three-month old daughter from the Driscoll Bridge after abducting
her in East Orange Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.
New Jersey State Police rescue crews will continue to search the
river this morning at daybreak, said East Orange police spokesman Sgt.
Andrew Dielmo.
Police found the man, Shamshiddin Abdur-Raheem, sometime after 8
p.m. Tuesday at a family member’s residence in the Sicklerville section
of Winslow Township, Camden County, according to Winslow police Lt.
Michael Hoffman. There was no sign of his young daughter Zara
Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem, whom East Orange police claim he kidnapped
late Tuesday afternoon.
Hoffman said police received a call from a family member saying
Abdur-Raheem was in the area, and when local law enforcement questioned
him about the alleged abduction, he told them he had thrown the young
girl off the Driscoll Bridge and into the Raritan River while driving
along the Garden State Parkway southbound, according to Dielmo.
New Jersey State Police rescue crews were searching the river
tonight and this morning, according to Dielmo, and East Orange
detectives were traveling to Winslow Twp. to interview Abdur-Raheem.
Police believe Abdur-Raheem abducted the baby girl inside an
apartment on the 200 block of South Harrison Street in East Orange
after he attacked the child’s grandmother. While he is the biological
father, according to Dielmo, Abdur-Raheem does not have custody rights.
The 21-year-old was arguing with the child’s grandmother at 4:19
p.m. when police claim he punched the elderly woman, ripped his young
daughter from her arms and left the house, Dielmo said. Abdur-Raheem
reportedly then placed the girl, dressed only in green pajamas, inside
a van and drove off. A Dodge Caravan is registered to Abdur-Raheem’s
mother.
The identities of the child’s mother and grandmother were not
immediately available. Abdur-Raheem and the child’s mother are not
married, and it was not clear if they were having relationship
problems, Dielmo said.
East Orange Police requested an Amber alert notification, which was
scheduled to be issued sometime Tuesday by the State Police. Amber
alerts broadcast information about missing children and their alleged
captors to radio and television broadcasters and state transportation
officials.

SAYREVILLE, N.J. -- State Police are searching
for a 3-month-old girl after her father claims he threw the infant off a bridge into a river.

The search Wednesday is centered on the Garden State Parkway's
Driscoll Bridge, which spans the Raritan River between Sayreville
and Woodbridge.

Authorities say 21-year-old Shamsiddin Abdur-Raheem punched the child's
elderly grandmother in the face and ripped the girl from her arms, says
East Orange Police Sgt. Andrew Dielmo.

The grandmother ran after Abdur-Raheem and threw herself on the hood of the vehicle in an attempt to stop the abduction.

Reports say Abdur-Raheem climbed into the minivan's passenger seat and
an unidentified man was waiting for him in the driver's seat.

Police found him at a
relative's home in Winslow Township.

Winslow police Lt. Michael Hoffman says Abdur-Raheem, of
Galloway Township, told authorities he threw his daughter off the
bridge into the river.

After tossing his daughter into the river, he drove to see an Imam in Atlantic County, police said.

The child's mother, Venetta Benjamin, had sought a restraining
order against the man Tuesday.

"I just want my baby to get back home," the baby's mother Venetta
Benjamin told reporters outside her apartment Wednesday. "I ask anybody
if they have seen my daughter to please contact police."

Her lawyer, Mitchell Liebowitz, says
the baby was snatched before the order was served.

An Amber Alert was issued for Zara. She was born on Nov. 19 2009 and last seen wearing green pajamas.

Abdur-Raheem has been charged with attempted murder, kidnapping, aggravated assault and possession of a weapon.

Man Accused Of Throwing Infant From Driscoll Bridge Held On Charges

TRENTON
– A Galloway Township man has been charged with kidnapping and
attempted murder, among other offenses, after he allegedly abducted his
infant daughter in East Orange yesterday. Police received information
that he threw the baby from the Driscoll Bridge on the Garden State
Parkway, said Acting Attorney General Paula T. Dow.
A search to locate the missing 3-month old, Zara Malani-lin Abdur,
is continuing in the area of the bridge over the Raritan River in
Sayreville, according to State Police Superintendent Col. Rick Fuentes.
The search began last evening.Criminal Justice Director Stephen J. Taylor reported that the
father, Shamsiddi Abdur-Raheem, 21, of Galloway Township, has been
charged by the East Orange Police Department with kidnapping (1st
degree), attempted murder (1st degree), two counts of aggravated
assault (2nd degree), and endangering the welfare of a child (2nd
degree). Abdur-Raheem will be lodged in the Essex County Jail in lieu
of $700,000 bail. It is anticipated that he will be arraigned on the
charges tomorrow in Superior Court in Essex County.
The infant was in the care of her 60-year-old maternal grandmother
in an apartment in East Orange at the time of the alleged abduction.
The infant’s mother has custody of the child and obtained a restraining
order against Abdur-Raheem yesterday. Shortly after 4 p.m. yesterday,
Abdur-Raheem allegedly forced his way into the grandmother’s apartment,
struck the grandmother in the face and choked her. Abdur-Raheem
allegedly took the infant girl, according to authorities.
The grandmother followed Abdur-Raheem outside and got in front of
his vehicle, a Dodge Caravan, in an attempt to stop him, according to
authorities. Abdur-Raheem allegedly attempted to run the grandmother
over, striking her and driving away with the baby. The alleged attack
was reported to the East Orange Police, who issued a bulletin to all
law enforcement regarding the child. The grandmother was taken to
University Hospital, where she was treated and later released,
authorities said.
Abdur-Raheem was arrested by Winslow Township Police at a family
member’s residence in Winslow Township after the family member called
police shortly after 8 p.m. last night to report that Abdur-Raheem was
at the house, according to authorities. After police received
information that Abdur-Raheem allegedly threw the infant from the
bridge, the State Police immediately commenced a search in the area of
the bridge.
Before his arrest, Abdur-Raheem had gone to see his Imam, his
Islamic religious leader, in Atlantic City, and the Imam drove him to
the home of the relative who called police, authorities said.
The missing infant was reported to be wearing a pink and gray
Carter’s onesie and may have been wrapped in a blue sleeping bag. If
any member of the public has information regarding the infant or this
case, authorities urge them to report it confidentially by calling the
State Police hotline 1-732-264-4150.
The ongoing search has included members of the New Jersey State
Police Marine, Aviation and Canine Units, authorities said. The water
search has involved two vessels from the State Police Marine Unit, as
well as one boat from each of the following agencies: Jersey City
Police Department, Union County Police Department, Perth Amboy Fire
Department, Newark Fire Department, New York City Police Department and
U.S. Coast Guard.
The investigation has been conducted by the New Jersey State Police,
East Orange Police Department, Winslow Township Police Department,
Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office
and Division of Criminal Justice. The case will be prosecuted by the
Division of Criminal Justice.
The kidnapping charge carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in
state prison, while the attempted murder charge carries a maximum
sentence of 20 years in state prison. Second-degree charges carry a
maximum sentence of 10 years in state prison.

IT WAS RARE for Shamsiddin Abdur-Raheem to open up to his family, so
when the tall, quiet, prelaw student told a gruesome story Tuesday
night, his father listened closely and let him finish.When the story was over, Mushin Raheem called the police and his son went to jail."It hurt. It really hurt," said a tired and bleary-eyed Raheem, sitting
in the living room of his Winslow Township, Camden County, town house,
where his son was arrested.Raheem didn't want to discuss the details of the conversation with this
reporter yesterday, but acting New Jersey Attorney General Paula Dow
said that Abdur-Raheem, of Galloway, Atlantic County, ended a violent
day Tuesday with an unthinkable act by throwing his 3-month-old
daughter off a Garden State Parkway Bridge into the icy Raritan River
in Middlesex County."You never know what triggers someone to go horribly wrong and this is
one of those circumstances," Dow said. "This was his daughter and now
we're searching for her body."Dozens of emergency personnel, including divers, police and Coast Guard
boats, and K-9 units had been searching the river and its shores for
Zara Malani-lin Abdur since Tuesday night but had found nothing as of
late last night. "We're following anything we can get," said State Police spokesman Sgt.
Stephen Jones. "We're looking in the waterway, but we're also looking
along the Garden State Parkway."Dow said that Abdur-Raheem, a student at Richard Stockton College of
New Jersey, in Galloway, had kidnapped his daughter from an East Orange
apartment about 4 p.m. Tuesday, while the baby's mother, Venetta
Benjamin, was out filing a temporary restraining order against him in
Essex County Superior Court.Abdur-Raheem forced his way into the apartment and struck the little
girl's 60-year-old grandmother in the face and choked her before
leaving with the baby, Dow said.When the grandmother followed Abdur-Raheem into the parking lot and
tried to prevent his escape, he struck her with the Dodge Caravan he
was driving and tried to run her over, Dow said.A woman who answered the phone at the East Orange apartment yesterday
declined to comment, but earlier in the day Benjamin pleaded to
reporters gathered outside the apartment for her daughter's safe
return. Her attorney declined to discuss why the restraining order had
been filed. After leaving East Orange, Abdur-Raheem then fled south on the Parkway,
allegedly stopping on the bridge in Sayreville to toss his daughter
into the water. He then went to see Imam Amin Muhammad at the Masjid
Mohammed, in Atlantic City, where he had grown up and attended high
school.Muhammad would not comment, but the organization as a whole was praying for the young girl, a spokesman said yesterday."As human beings, we are concerned and we hope it works out," said Kareem Sha- bazz.Raheem said that his son and Muhammad had driven to his Winslow
Township home Tuesday night. Authorities arrested Abdur-Raheem there
without incident about 8 p.m., after Raheem called the police. Dow said that authorities were in the process of issuing an Amber Alert when Abdur-Raheem was arrested.Sitting in his living room yesterday, surrounded by pictures of his
family and Muslim leaders, Raheem was unable to reconcile the "very
peaceful" and devout Muslim who had excelled in school with the man who
may have killed his own daughter."I pray to God that he gave that baby away . . . or did something else," he said. "I hope the baby is alive."Abdur-Raheem, according to his Facebook profile and a news release from
Stockton College, was a former intern with the U.S. Attorney General's
Office, in Washington. His profile also said he planned to become a
lawyer when he graduated this spring.A spokesman for the college said that both Abdur-Raheem and Benjamin
were enrolled there, but declined to comment further. Raheem said his
son lived on the bucolic campus.Raheem said that his son and Benjamin had been fighting recently,
allegedly because she didn't want to marry him, but that he wasn't sure
that was the reason. Abdur-Raheem rarely shared his troubles, his
father said."I tried to let him know that he could have come to us and talked," he said. "He tried to deal with stuff on his own."Abdur-Raheem was being held in the Essex County Correctional Facility
on $700,000 bail and will be arraigned today on charges of kidnapping,
attempted murder, aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of a
child.More charges could be pending, Dow said, but it depends on the outcome of the search for Abdur-Raheem's baby daughter."The longer the time passes," she said, "the worse the prognosis is for a happy ending." The missing infant was reported to be wearing a pink and gray Carter's
onesie and may have been wrapped in a blue sleeping bag. If anyone has
any information about the case, they can contact New Jersey State
Police at 732-264-4150.

A man who snatched his infant daughter from the arms of her maternal
grandmother while the child's mother was in court getting a restraining
order against him told police he threw the baby off a bridge and into a
frigid New Jersey river, prompting a massive search beneath a busy
parkway.

Search teams, including boats, dogs and helicopters,
scoured the area beneath the Garden State Parkway's Driscoll Bridge in
Central New Jersey on Wednesday for any signs of 3-month-old Zara
Malani-lin Abdur, who was abducted Tuesday.

Authorities suspended the search after dark and planned to resume at daybreak Thursday.

Acting New Jersey Attorney General Paula Dow called it "an example of a horrific case of domestic violence."

Authorities
say the girl's father, 21-year-old Shamsiddi Abdur-Raheem, allegedly
forced his way into the grandmother's apartment Tuesday afternoon,
striking her in the face, choking her, and forcibly taking the baby,
wrapped in a blanket.

The 60-year-old grandmother, who police
declined to identify, chased after Abdur-Raheem and was struck when she
tried to stop him by throwing herself in the path of his van. She was
treated at a local hospital and released.

Abdur-Raheem was
arrested four hours after the abduction and allegedly confessed to
police that he had tossed the child from the bridge before driving to
consult with his Imam, who then drove him to the home of a relative who
called police.

Abdur-Raheem faces charges of kidnapping,
attempted murder, aggravated assault and child endangerment when he is
arraigned Thursday morning in Superior Court.

It was not immediately clear if he has retained a lawyer. He was being held at the Essex County Jail on $700,000 bail.

The
child's mother, Venetta Benjamin, who has sole custody of the infant,
was in a Newark courtroom seeking a restraining order against
Abdur-Raheem at the time of the alleged abduction.

Her lawyer, Mitchell Liebowitz, said the baby was snatched before the order was served.

A New Jersey father pleaded not guilty Thursday to
charges stemming from the disappearance of his 3-month-old daughter --
and officials said they fear the worst for the small child, who may
have been thrown off a bridge.
Officials say the father, 21-year-old Shamsiddi Abdur-Raheem, told police
he threw the baby from Garden State Parkway's Driscoll Bridge.
Search teams fanned out in the frigid river in search of little Zara Malani-lin Abdur, but so far, no clues have been found.
Abdur-Raheem appeared composed during his video arraignment in Newark . He was
charged with kidnapping, attempted murder, aggravated assault and child
endangerment. He faces up to 30 years on the kidnapping charge alone.
There was no reaction from the child's mother, Venetta Benjamin, who watched in court.





3-month-old Zara Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem

Authorities say Abdur-Raheem abducted his daughter from her grandmother in East
Orange on Tuesday and fled in a van with the baby. Police found him at
a relative's home in Winslow Township.
Abdur-Raheem is being held in lieu of $700,000 bail.
Benjamin sought a restraining order against Abdur-Raheem Tuesday. Her lawyer,
Mitchell Liebowitz, says the baby was snatched before the order was
served.
NJ Attorney General Paula Dow said authorities believe Benjamin "was in
the process of obtaining that restraining order as the kidnap occurred."
Officials could not fully explain why an Amber Alert wasn't issued when the baby was taken at around 4:10 p.m. Tuesday.
"We don't know whether it should have been issued or it should not have
been issued, we have a protocol and we are reviewing the protocol,"
said Dow. "Right now our focus is on finding the child."
Officials also acknowledged reports that there may have been a third person with Abdur-Raheem and his daughter.
"We are pursuing all leads," said Dow. Anyone with information should call 732-264-4150.

NEWARK — While police divers searched the frigid
waters of the Raritan River for the body of a 3-month-old baby, her
father, who told police he threw the child from the Garden State
Parkway's Driscoll Bridge on Tuesday, pleaded not guilty to charges
related to the case.
With the body of Zara Malani-lin Abdur still unaccounted for, the
21-year-old Shamsiddin Abdur-Raheem has not been charged with her
murder.Wearing
an orange jumpsuit in the county jail here on Doremus Avenue,
Abdur-Raheem (whose first name was initially spelled by authorities as
Shamsiddi) was arraigned at the Essex County Courthouse on charges of
kidnapping, attempted murder, aggravated assault and child endangerment.While he was being arraigned, the State Police marine and aviation units continued to search the Raritan River on Thursday.State Police Capt. Gerald Lewis said, "It's not likely at this point" that the baby is still alive.The
State Police were joined by boat crews from the Perth Amboy Fire
Department, the Union County and Jersey City police departments, the
Coast Guard and the New York Police Department Harbor Unit.In
the courtroom here, Abdur-Raheem's image was shown on closed circuit
televisions in the courtroom of Superior Court Judge Amilkar
Velez-Lopez. He spoke only when the judge asked him if he lived at a
particular address in Galloway, Atlantic County.The
mother of the child, Venetta Benjamin of East Orange, was joined in the
fifth-floor courtroom at the Essex County Courthouse by family and
friends, including an Episcopal priest.She showed no emotion during the proceeding, and left without speaking to reporters.The
not-guilty plea was entered by public defender Regina Lynch, who asked
the judge to reduce bail from $700,000. She argued that Abdur-Raheem
does not have a criminal record as an adult. The request was denied.Deputy Attorney General Andrew C. Fried said he could not discuss the case beyond what occurred at the arraignment.Throughout the arraignment, Abdur-Raheem's eyes were fixed on the camera. Three uniformed officers stood behind him.
Asked if the case would be moved to Middlesex County if the child's
body is recovered in the county, Fried said the choice of venue would
be made by the attorney general's office.
The charge of attempted murder was the result of Abdur-Raheem allegedly
striking the baby's grandmother with his car, after wresting the child
away from her in East Orange at about 4 p.m. Tuesday.According
to police, Abdur-Raheem drove south on the Garden State Parkway and
threw the baby off the bridge between Woodbridge and Sayreville.The
suspect's father, Mushin Raheem, told the Associated Press that the
relationship between his son and Benjamin, who are not married, had
been bumpy since they started dating as freshmen at The Richard
Stockton College of New Jersey in Atlantic County.Raheem
said his son and Benjamin moved into an apartment together in Galloway
about two weeks ago. She moved out within a week, Raheem said, going to
live with her mother.Raheem said that Amin Muhammad, an Atlantic City Imam who was close to his
son, brought the young man to his father's home Tuesday night. Police
arrested Abdur-Raheem there later.Raheem wouldn't say what his son,
who aspired to go into criminal law, told him then."It's very difficult,"
Raheem said. "Everybody in my family's hurt by this."In
light of the abduction, acting state Attorney General Paula Dow has
ordered the State Police to revisit the time line of the incident to
see if tweaks are needed for the Amber Alert system, a spokesman said
Thursday.Details
of the four-hour lapse between the initial abduction and Abdur-Raheem's
confession raised questions Wednesday about why the statewide alert was
not issued during that time.Loriquet said the incident was first reported as an assault,
leading police to focus on finding the van used to try to run down the baby's
grandmother. After she was treated, however, she told police Zara might
be in danger, and the State Police were notified.But
the agency learned of Abdur-Raheem's arrest just as they were preparing
to issue the alert, said Loriquet, who conceded that details of the
case were "trickling in slowly."
The spokesman also said the Amber Alert system is typically activated

when it involves nonfamily members, unless authorities believe the

family member poses a threat. But he said officials will look at that

and other criteria as they review the incident.
"We're always looking for areas to improve. Policies are not etched
in stone," Loriquet said. "If there needs to be some modifications, we
will certainly do so."The
search for the missing infant in the river continued Thursday. Loriquet
said the State Police will determine when to call it off."It
is our hope that this is a hoax, but right now the credible information
that police have developed leads us, still, to that location," he said.In
their effort to locate the child's body, the State Police boat crews
searched in a grid pattern — going section by section — using
technology known as side-scan sonar, said Staff Sgt. Dave Labriola of
the Marine Services Bureau.The
system uses a "tow fish" device on a boat that emits fan-shaped pulses
toward the river bed, generating live images that can be seen by
troopers on board. The images allow crews to detect anomalies at the
bottom of the river and decide whether to send in divers for a closer
look, Labriola said."It
paints a picture of the bottom of the sea floor, and the troopers will
monitor the computer screen and pick up different targets," he said.State
Police crews used side-scan sonar in January 2009, when they helped
scour the frigid Hudson River for the sunken left engine of U.S.
Airways Flight 1549.The
State Police are urging anyone who saw anything unusual on the Driscoll
Bridge between 4:30 and 5:15 p.m. Tuesday to call 732-264-4150,
according to www.511nj.org.

NEWARK — The State Police will scale back its presence
in the Raritan River this weekend as air and boat crews continue to
look for the 3-month-old baby whose father said he threw her off a
bridge on the Garden State Parkway on Tuesday.
State Police Capt. Gerald Lewis said routine patrols by marine units
and helicopters will continue to focus on the area under the Driscoll
Bridge, which connects Sayreville in Woodbridge. The checks will go on
as the father, 21-year-old Shamsiddin Abdur-Raheem, remains at the
Essex County Jail in lieu of $700,000 bail."We're not
going to end it,'' Lewis said of the search, "but we're going to be
re-evaluating how we could best deploy our resources in that particular
area.''Abdur-Raheem of Galloway Township has pleaded not guilty to charges
of kidnapping, attempted murder, aggravated assault and child
endangerment. Authorities say he abducted Zara Malani-lin Abdur on
Tuesday from her grandmother's apartment in East Orange, where he
punched and choked the 60-year-old woman before trying to run her down
with a van.Acting Attorney General Paula Dow said the baby's mother had obtained a restraining order against Abdur-Raheem on Tuesday.The
suspect was arrested Tuesday night at his father's home in Winslow
Township, Camden County, where had been taken by an imam some four
hours after the kidnapping. At that point, authorities say, he told
police he had tossed the baby off the Parkway bridge.The
admission set off a massive search of the icy river involving boats,
helicopters and divers. As the effort continued Friday, State Police
officials said they didn't have a time line for how long the search
will last, and declined to say whether the search is still considered a
rescue or is now a recovery of baby Zara's body.As of
about 4 p.m. Friday, boats that used side-scan sonar technology to scan
the riverbed were leaving the river, said Lewis, the State Police
captain.Patrols in the Raritan River are routine by boats
and helicopters as part of the State Police's homeland security detail,
Lewis said.

Family and friends have planned a candlelight vigil Sunday night for 3-month old Zara Malani-lin Abdur.
Police say 21-year-old Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem, of Galloway, told
them he threw his daughter off the Driscoll Bridge on the Garden State
Parkway on Tuesday. Abdur-Raheem has pleaded not guilty to
charges including the attempted murder of the child's maternal
grandmother whom police say he assaulted during the alleged abduction.
The child's mother had sought a restraining order against him. The search for Zara was scaled back Friday after sonar units failed to find anything in the water.
A vigil is planned for Sunday night from 7:00pm to 9:00pm at the Church
of Epiphany, located at 105 Main Street in East Orange. Zara was reported to be wearing a pink and gray Carter's onesie and may have been wrapped in a blue sleeping bag. If anyone has information regarding the infant or this case, they are
urged to report it confidentially by calling the State Police hotline
732-264-4150.

Venetta Benjamin is barefoot and dressed in a T-shirt and leggings as she clutches a photograph of 3-monthold Zara.
Sitting on the couch in her mother’s East Orange apartment, she
remembers cradling her infant in her arms and says she misses feeding
her daughter, washing her and smelling the sweet scent of her soft,
curly hair.
On Tuesday, her former boyfriend Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem, 21,
allegedly kidnapped their baby daughter and threw her over the side of
the Driscoll Bridge into the frigid waters of the Raritan River. Though
State Police boats continue the search for Zara, their operations were
scaled back on Friday, said spokesman Sgt. Julian Castellanos.
Benjamin, however, says, “I really, truly do not think she is there.”
The 23-year-old mother and college student believes, instead, that
her baby is alive and that Abdur-Raheem, who was often jealous and
possessive of his girlfriend, lied to police.
“He will say anything to get to me,” she said yesterday, but added
that she also believes, “he knows right from wrong. He wasn’t raised
like this.”
So while she waits for word from the police, or another confession from Abdur-Raheem, she continues to hope.
“We haven’t found her yet,” said Benjamin, “I pray to God somebody is taking care of my baby.”
What is known about the case, ac- cording to authorities, is that on
Tuesday, shortly after 4 p.m., Abdur-Raheem barged into the home of
Benjamin’s 60-year-old mother, Leno Benjamin. He allegedly punched her
in the face, placed her in a choke-hold and ran off with the baby, even
as Leno Benjamin fought him all way to a dark minivan parked outside
the apartment building.
Leno Benjamin said she tried to stop Abdur-Raheem from leaving by
standing in front of the vehicle. Instead, he struck her with the
minivan as he sped away, she said, leaving her with a bruised and
swollen right leg.

RESTRAINING ORDER
Venetta Benjamin was on her way back to the apartment at the time,
after obtaining a temporary restraining order against Abdur-Raheem in
Superior Court in Newark. Benjamin said her ex-boyfriend was incensed
because two weeks earlier she had moved out of their condo in Galloway
Township, Atlantic County, and was not answering her cell phone.
Benjamin says she does not know if Abdur-Raheem knew about the restraining order.
After he allegedly threw his daughter into the Raritan, Abdur-Raheem
drove to a mosque in Atlantic City where he confessed to the head imam,
authorities said earlier last week. Relatives, however, said yesterday
Abdur-Raheem drove to a mosque in Camden County before heading to
Atlantic City.
Benjamin said the imam drove the young man to his father’s home in
the Sicklerville section of Winslow Township, Camden County, where he
was arrested sometime after 8 p.m.
On Thursday, Abdur-Raheem was arraigned in Superior Court in Newark
on aggravated assault and attempted murder charges for allegedly
attacking Leno Benjamin, and with kidnapping and endangering the
welfare of a child. He pleaded not guilty and was being held yesterday
on $700,000 cash bail in Essex County Jail.
Acting Attorney General Paula Dow ordered an investigation Thursday
into why four hours passed without an Amber Alert being issued. In an
Amber Alert, the public is notified when a child has been abducted and
his or her life is believed to be in danger.
“It should have been right away,” Benjamin said of the alert, but
the young mother was trying not to focus on “controversies,” and
instead was grappling with how Abdur-Raheem could have taken the baby
and where her little Zara was now.

QUICK TO ANGER
Abdur-Raheem, a student at Richard Stockton College of New Jersey where
Benjamin also studied, was so smart he didn’t need to prepare for
tests, she said, but behind his bookish exterior was a temper. For the
three stormy years they were together, he was quick to anger especially
when he thought she might leave him, she said.
They broke up briefly in 2008 when Abdur-Raheem married a
Bangladeshi girl in an Islamic ceremony that was never legalized and
which ended after a few weeks, said Benjamin.
When Benjamin got pregnant last year, they moved in together and
tried to work on their relationship, but his volatility drove them
apart and she moved out with their baby on Feb. 1, she said.
Now Benjamin wants her little girl back. The family plans to hold a
prayer vigil for Zara tonight at 7 at the Episcopal Church of the
Epiphany, 105 Main St. in Orange.
“I don’t want people want to forget about this,” Benjamin said. “I
just want her back. In every inch of me, I feel she can’t be gone.”

NEWARK, N.J. - The lawyer for the mother of a three-month-old girl
whose father told police he threw the baby off a Garden State Parkway
bridge says the woman was turned away by police when she first sought a
restraining order.Venetta Benjamin went to police in East Orange, where she lived, on
Feb. 15 seeking protection from the father, Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem,
attorney Mitchell Liebowitz said today . Police told her that Family Court was closed - it was Presidents' Day -
and that she should return the next day, according to Liebowitz. An
on-call judge should have been contacted, he said. Benjamin got the order on Feb. 16, but police say Abdur-Raheem abducted
the child before it could be served. The child, who the suspect says he
tossed into the Raritan River, has not been found. East Orange Police Chief Ronald Borgo and the state Attorney General's Office are investigating the claims.

The state Attorney General's office filed murder charges today
against the Galloway Township man who allegedly threw his infant
daughter off a bridge last week.
Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem, 21, told relatives on Feb. 17 that he
pushed 3-month-old Zara Malani-lin Abdur-Raheem through the front
passenger window of his Dodge Caravan into the Raritan River that
evening from the southbound shoulder of the Garden State Parkway on
the Driscoll Bridge near Woodland Township, Middlesex County,
according to a statement from the state Attorney General's office
released today.
Authorities have not yet found the child and scaled back the
search of the river Friday afternoon.


Abdur-Raheem, who grew up in Atlantic City, had taken the child
from her maternal grandmother's apartment in East Orange, Essex
County, about 4 p.m. that day. He allegedly hit and choked the
60-year-old and nearly ran her over with his car, police said.
Three days later, he entered a not guilty plea to charges of
attempted murder, aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of
a child in Essex County Superior Court in Newark.
Abdur-Raheem remains jailed at the Essex County Correctional
Facility. With the murder charge, his bail was increased to $2
million, today's statement read.
Abdur-Raheem was scheduled to graduate in the spring from the
Richard Stockton College with a degree in criminal justice. He
wanted to be a lawyer, his father Mushin Abdur-Raheem has said.
The child's mother Venetta Benjamin, 23, filed a restraining
order against Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem the day he took their baby,
but he had not been served before he got to Benjamin's mother's
house.
Benjamin, who had sole custody of the child, was not married to
Abdur-Raheem.
Her attorney has contended she tried to file the order earlier,
but was turned away.
Questions about why an Amber Alert was not issued during the
four hours that passed between initial calls to police and
Abdur-Raheem's arrest have prompted authorities to re-examine
procedures for the emergency broadcasts.
Authorities have said the baby was wearing a green Carter's
onesie and might have been wrapped in a blue sleeping bag.
Investigators have asked that anyone with information about the
incident call the State Police at 732-264-4150 or the Division of
Criminal Justice at 1-866-TIPS-4CJ.

MIDDLESEX COUNTY
— The man accused of kidnapping his 3-month-old daughter and tossing
her from the Driscoll Bridge last week is due in court this week to
face a murder charge in Middlesex County, authorities said.
Officials
had yet to schedule the appearance for Shamsiddin Abdur-Raheem, 21, of
Galloway Township, who reportedly admitted to throwing the infant from
the Garden State Parkway span and into the Raritan River. He was
charged Wednesday after state authorities say they corroborated his
confession through witnesses and their own investigation.Investigators
and the State Police, meanwhile, continue to look for the body of Zara
Malani-lin Abdur, but authorities said the search remains scaled back
from the intense effort last week."This
is now a murder case," Stephen Taylor, the state attorney general's
director of criminal justice, said Wednesday in a statement announcing
the charges.The newest complaint was filed in Middlesex County, where bail for the murder charge was set at $2 million, authorities said.According
to the complaint, Abdur—Raheem on Feb. 16 parked his Dodge Caravan on
the right southbound shoulder of the Parkway and dropped, pushed or
threw the infant from the front passenger's-side window into the river
from the span connecting Woodbridge and Sayreville.The
defendant, who did not have custody of Zara, has been held at the Essex
County Jail since that day on charges that he violently kidnapped the
infant from her grandmother's home."We
have charged the father with murder after obtaining evidence and
information corroborating initial reports that he threw the baby from
the bridge," state Attorney General Paula Dow said in a statement.
"While our ongoing exhaustive search has not located the victim, we are
moving forward with our investigation and our pursuit of justice in
this tragic case of domestic violence."Abdur-Raheem
faces 30 years to life in prison if convicted of the first-degree
murder charge, Dow said. He pleaded not guilty last week to charges of
kidnapping, attempted murder, aggravated assault and child endangerment.Authorities
say he abducted Zara after punching, choking and using his van to try
to run down the baby's 60-year-old maternal grandmother. He was
arrested that night at his father's home in Winslow Township, Camden
County, where he had been taken by an imam some four hours after the
kidnapping.At
that point, authorities say, Abdur-Raheem he told police he had tossed
the baby off the Parkway bridge, setting off the massive search of the
icy river by air and boat crews. Police are still looking for her body,
but the intense effort was scaled back last week after the crews came
up empty."(They're)
out there putting a little extra emphasis on that area as part of their
regular patrols, but we've definitely scaled back since last week,"
State Police Sgt. Julian Castellanos said Wednesday. "Nothing's changed
since late Friday."Dow,
the attorney general, said the baby's mother had obtained a restraining
order against Abdur-Raheem on Tuesday, the day the baby was abducted.Dow's
office has since said it would review state guidelines for when
law-enforcement agencies issue an Amber Alert, which was not sent out
during the four hours between the abduction and Abdur-Raheem's arrest.
The broadcast is meant to alert the public and seek their help in
child-abduction cases, but they are not routinely issued in custody
disputes or parental-abduction cases.

A New Jersey man has pleaded not guilty to a charge that he murdered
his 3-month-old daughter by throwing her off a highway bridge.
Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem of Galloway Township appeared Monday at an
arraignment in New Brunswick via video link from the Essex County jail,
where he is being held on $2 million bail. A public defender entered
the plea for him.The baby's mother was in court and watched without visible reaction.Abdur-Raheem is charged with killing Zara Malani-lin Abdur after allegedly snatching her maternal grandmother Feb. 16.Prosecutors
charge that Abdur-Raheem tossed the baby from the Garden State
Parkway's Driscoll Bridge into the Raritan River in Middlesex County.
The child has not been found.Abdur-Raheem has already pleaded not guilty to several related charges.

State Police believe they have recovered the body of a 3-month-old
infant allegedly abducted by her father and thought to have been thrown
off the Driscoll Bridge.
If the body is identified as Zara Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem, it would
end more than two months of uncertainty for desperate family members and
authorities prosecuting a murder case that still has no body.
An official identification of the body found this morning along the
Raritan River in Sayreville could take several days, pending DNA tests,
but State Police spokesman Sgt. Stephen Jones said there is “strong
evidence” to indicate the baby is Zara Abdur-Raheem. Clothing and
wrappings on the infant’s body match the description given by
Abdur-Raheem’s family.
Detectives from the State Police and East Orange Police Department
notified the baby’s mother, Venetta Benjamin, this morning.

Venetta Benjamin with a picture of her
3-month-old daughter,
Zara Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem,
four days after the infant
was allegedly abducted by baby's father in February.


At the East Orange apartment of Leno Benjamin, the baby’s
grandmother, family members said they did not want to talk about the
news. One of Venetta Benjamin’s sisters said she was “shocked” and the
family is devastated. “It’s horrible,” she said.
Benjamin's attorney, Mitchell Liebowitz, said the family is
"profoundly grieved."
"We hope their privacy is respected at this time," he added,
declining to comment further.
The day before the Feb. 16 kidnapping, Benjamin, a 23-year-old
college student, went to police in East Orange seeking a restraining
order against her estranged boyfriend, Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem, 21, of
Galloway Township. But because it was a holiday — Presidents Day — the
order was not issued against until the next day, when the court
reopened.Before the temporary restraining order could be served, Abdur-Raheem,
a fellow student at the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, stormed
into the Leno Benjamin’s home in East Orange. Police say the two argued
and Abdur-Raheem punched and choked the 60-year-old woman, then struck
her with his minivan when she tried to stop him from fleeing with the
infant.
When Abdur-Raheem was later arrested at his father’s home in Winslow
Township, Camden County, he told police he had pulled over on the Garden
State Parkway and tossed the swaddled infant off the Driscoll Bridge
into the icy river below. Divers searched the area for several days but
did not find the baby.
Days after the kidnapping, Venetta Benjamin said she believed her
ex-boyfriend was lying and the baby was still alive, but around 8:30
a.m. this morning, the body of an infant was discovered by people doing
survey work on the southern bank of the Raritan River in Sayreville,
Jones said. The site, just east of the Route 35 bridge, is near the
Driscoll Bridge, which connects Woodbridge and Sayreville.
Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem is charged with kidnapping and attempted
murder in Essex County for injuring Leno Benjamin. He pleaded not guilty
to those charges and is being held in Essex County Jail.
Although the baby’s body had not been found, Abdur-Raheem was charged
with murder in Middlesex County. He pleaded not guilty to that charge
as well.

New Jersey law enforcement officials are changing their procedures
for Amber Alerts after police failed to request one and a man then was
accused of throwing his abducted 3-month-old daughter from a bridge.

The revisions follow the disappearance of Zara Malani-Lin
Abdur-Raheem, who police say was thrown from a highway bridge Feb. 16.
East Orange police notified other law enforcement agencies about her
abduction but didn't ask state police to send an Amber Alert,
information about a missing child broadcast on television and radio
stations and posted on electronic highway message boards

A baby's body has been found but hasn't been identified.

An infant whose body was found Saturday on the banks of a New Jersey
river had drowned, an autopsy has revealed. Authorities are awaiting DNA
tests to confirm the body is that of a 3-month-old girl whose father is
accused of throwing the child off the Driscoll Bridge into the Raritan
River on Feb. 16.
Officials believe the infant is Zara Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem because
of clothing found with her, State Police Sgt. Stephen Jones said.
Prosecutors say Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem, a college student, killed his
daughter. The 21-year-old Galloway Township resident has pleaded not
guilty to murder and other charges.

The mother of the 3-month-old infant who was allegedly kidnapped and
tossed into the Raritan River by her father has notified East Orange
police she intends to file a lawsuit because they turned her away from
filing a restraining order against the father a day before the
abduction.
Venetta Benjamin, the 23-year-old mother, contends that if the
restraining order was filed against her estranged 21-year-old boyfriend,
Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem, then their child Zara Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem
would not have come to harm.

"He had respect for authority, but no respect for Venetta," said
attorney Mitchell Liebowitz, who is representing Benjamin along with
attorney John Kemenczy in West Caldwell.
East Orange police declined comment on the case because it is pending
litigation.
"We will be as cooperative as possible during the process," said
Mayor Robert L. Bowser, who would not comment further on the case as
well.
On Feb. 15, Benjamin went to East Orange police to file a restraining
order against Abdur-Raheem, according to the notice of claim. Benjamin
had recently moved out of their Galloway Township home and was living at
the East Orange apartment of her mother, Leno Benjamin, at the time.
But because it was President’s Day, a holiday, Venetta Benjamin
claims police turned her away and told her to file the next day even
though she told them she had previously filed a temporary restraining
order in 2008 and her boyfriend had a history of abuse.
The order was issued the next day but was never served, Liebowitz
said.
That same day, Abdur-Raheem barged into the East Orange home of
Benjamin’s mother, attacked the 60-year old, grabbed the child, and then
struck the woman with a minivan as she tried to stop him, authorities
have said.
Abdur-Raheem allegedly told police when he was arrested later at his
father’s home in Winslow Township, Camden County, that he had pulled
over on the Garden State Parkway and tossed the infant off the Driscoll
Bridge into the icy river below, according to officials from the Essex
County Prosecutor’s Office. Divers searched the area for several days
but did not find the baby.
Benjamin and family hoped that the baby was alive. She said officials
told her that investigators were looking at whether Abdur-Raheem
smuggled the infant to the Middle East.
But on the morning of April 24, the body of an infant was discovered
by people doing survey work on the southern bank of the Raritan River in
Sayreville — near the Driscoll Bridge, State Police said.
DNA testing was still ongoing yesterday, but Benjamin said she is
sure that the baby is Zara because the infant recently found was wearing
green pajamas — the same clothing her baby wore at the time of her
abduction.
Abdur-Raheem was charged with kidnapping and attempted murder in
Essex County for allegedly injuring Leno Benjamin. He has also been
charged with murder in Middlesex County.
Abdur-Raheem was being held in protective custody on $2.7 million
bail at the Essex County jail, officials said.

Another stupid mother trying to blame authorities and get some money by suing. There should be a law against making dumb decisions. This girl filed a restraining order against him in 2008 and acknowledges that he had a history of abuse in 2008. She could have had nothing more to do with him. But instead she made the decision to have a baby with this abuser. Very clever. Then she wants to get rid of him again 5 minutes after the baby is born and files another order and because it couldn't be done immediately she says it's all the authorities fault her baby is dead. She's been jerking this guy around since he was 18 and probably drove him over the edge.
Throw her in jail until she can't breed anymore please.

DNA tests confirm that the body of an infant found in the
Raritan River is that of 3-month-old Zara Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem.
New Jersey Attorney General Paula T. Dow confirmed the DNA
results through a press release.
The announcement ends more than two months of speculation and
searching. According to police, the baby's father, Galloway
Township resident Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem, tossed the baby from a
bridge Feb. 16.
Abdur-Raheem is charged with murder. The 21-year-old pled not guilty.
State Police searched the river for weeks, looking for Zara's
body. People walking along the river's edge found the body April 24.
The Feb. 16 incident inspired the state Attorney General's
office to change New Jersey's Amber Alert rules. Now, Amber Alerts
can be issued in some cases involving family members.

The Galloway Township man who allegedly threw his infant daughter
from the Driscoll Bridge on the Garden State Parkway in February was
indicted today by a state grand jury on charges of murder, kidnapping,
attempted murder and other crimes, Attorney General Paula T. Dow and
Criminal Justice Director Stephen J. Taylor announced.
According to Taylor, the Division of Criminal Justice obtained a
six-count state grand jury indictment charging Shamsiddin Abdur-Raheem,
22, with murder (1st degree), kidnapping (1st degree), endangering the
welfare of a child (2nd degree), two counts of aggravated assault (2nd
degree), and attempted murder (1st degree).“This indictment of Mr. Abdur-Raheem for the alleged murder of his
infant daughter represents important progress in our quest for justice
for Baby Zara,” said Dow. “This is a heartbreaking case of domestic
violence.”
“Investigators diligently pursued the evidence in this case, which
corroborated initial reports that the defendant threw the baby from the
bridge,” said Taylor. “That evidence has been presented to a state grand
jury, resulting in these very serious charges for which Mr.
Abdur-Raheem now faces trial.”
It is alleged that Abdur-Raheem killed his 3-month-old daughter, Zara
Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem, by causing her to fall from the Driscoll
Bridge in Woodbridge Township into the Raritan River on the afternoon of
Feb. 16. He allegedly pushed or threw her from the front passenger
window of his Dodge Caravan, which was parked on the southbound shoulder
of the Garden State Parkway. The baby fell an estimated 140 feet from
the bridge.
Abdur-Raheem is charged with attempted murder and aggravated assault
for allegedly attacking the baby’s maternal grandmother and striking her
with his vehicle while abducting the infant from the grandmother’s
apartment in East Orange before the baby was thrown from the bridge.
The infant’s mother had custody of the child and obtained a
restraining order against Abdur-Raheem that same day. The infant was in
the care of the 60-year-old grandmother when, at approximately 4 p.m.,
Abdur-Raheem allegedly entered the grandmother’s apartment. As the
grandmother attempted to hold onto the baby, Abdur-Raheem allegedly
struck the grandmother in the head and face, choked her, and banged her
head against the floor.
Abdur-Raheem allegedly took the infant girl, but the grandmother
followed him outside and got in front of his vehicle in an attempt to
stop him. Abdur-Raheem allegedly struck the grandmother with the Dodge
Caravan and drove away with the baby. The attempted murder charge
relates to the alleged attack on the grandmother inside the apartment as
well as the alleged act of striking her with the vehicle.
Abdur-Raheem was arrested that night at a family member’s home in
Winslow Township after the family member called police shortly after 8
p.m. to report that Abdur-Raheem was at the house. Police received
information at that time that Abdur-Raheem allegedly threw the infant
from the bridge, and the State Police immediately commenced an intensive
search.
Before his arrest, Abdur-Raheem had gone to see his imam, his Islamic
religious leader, in Atlantic City, and the imam drove him to the home
of the relative who called police.
The infant’s body remained missing until April 24, when it was found
by people walking on the south bank of the Raritan River, just east of
the Route 35 Victory Bridge. DNA tests confirmed that it was Zara
Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem.
Shamsiddin Abdur-Raheem is being held in the Essex County Jail with bail set at $2 million.
Deputy Attorney General Andrew C. Fried presented the case to the
state grand jury for the Division of Criminal Justice. He will be
prosecuting the case with Deputy Attorney General Paul Salvatoriello.
The investigation was conducted by the New Jersey State Police,
Division of Criminal Justice, East Orange Police Department, Winslow
Township Police Department, Essex County Prosecutor’s Office and
Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office. Detectives Harry McDermott and
Timothy P. Coyle are assigned to the case for the New Jersey State
Police. Detective Kevin Coleman is the lead detective for the East
Orange Police Department on this case.
The first-degree murder charge carries a sentence of 30 years to life
in state prison. The kidnapping charge carries a maximum sentence of 30
years in state prison, and the attempted murder charge carries a
maximum sentence of 20 years in state prison. Second-degree charges
carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in state prison.

A father charged with killing his 3-month-old daughter by throwing
her into the Raritan River had hours earlier brutally beaten the
maternal grandmother, according to an indictment handed up today.

Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem was indicted on charges of murder,
kidnapping, attempted murder, endangering the welfare of a child and
aggravated assault in the killing of Zara Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem, and
the attack on the woman, the state Attorney General’s Office said.

Attorney General Paula Dow, whose office is handling the prosecution,
said the indictment "represents important progress in our quest for
justice for Baby Zara," whose death she called "a heartbreaking case of
domestic violence."

Abdur-Raheem, 22, of Galloway Township, allegedly forced his way into
the grandmother’s home in East Orange on Feb. 16, according to the
seven-page indictment of a state grand jury. He then struck Leno
Benjamin, 60, "in the head and face, choking her neck and banging her
head against the floor," states the indictment. In her desperation to
save the child, the woman followed him and got in front of his Dodge
Caravan, which struck her as it accelerated away, the indictment read.

Abdur-Raheem drove to the Driscoll Bridge in Woodbridge Township,
where he threw or dropped Zara out the front passenger window into the
river, the attorney general’s office said.The infant fell an estimated 140 feet from the bridge; divers
searched the area for several days but could not find her. The body was
discovered more than two months later on the riverbank, near the Route
35 Victory Bridge.

A woman who identified herself as Abdur-Raheem’s mother described her son as "very depressed."

In a brief phone conversation today, the woman, who would not give
her name, said she supports her son, but would not do so "if I thought
he was evil. Unfortunately this situation happened. He was stressed to
that point," she said.

The woman wouldn’t address the allegations against her son except to
say Leno Benjamin ran into her son’s vehicle. "If he wanted to run her
over, he would have."

A day before the abduction, the baby’s mother, Venetta Benjamin, had
gone to East Orange police for a temporary restraining order against
Abdur-Raheem, her estranged boyfriend. Venetta Benjamin claimed the
officers told her to file the next day, citing the Presidents’ Day
holiday. Hours before that order could be served, Abdur-Raheem went to
the East Orange home where Benjamin, 23, and her daughter had recently
moved.

In May, Mitchell Liebowitz, who is Benjamin’s lawyer, gave notice of
his client’s intention to file a lawsuit. Neither Liebowitz nor the
Benjamin family would comment.

The killing gained widespread attention and also raised questions
about the state’s Amber Alert guidelines and how they applied to family
abductions. It led to new guidelines giving law enforcement a clear set
of questions to ask callers reporting a domestic abduction.

After allegedly tossing the baby, Abdur-Raheem had gone to see his
imam in Atlantic City, and the imam drove him to the home of a relative,
who called police.

Abdur-Raheem, who authorities say admitted to tossing the baby, has
pleaded not guilty. He is being held at Essex County Jail with bail set
at $2 million.

Richard P. Klein, Abdur-Raheem’s attorney said "we will explore every
legal option available to my client." Klein, of East Brunswick, said
the case will be heard in Middlesex County and arraignment is expected
to take place within the month.

A Galloway Township man accused of tossing his3-month-old daughter to her death off a bridge faces arraignmentTuesday. Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem is charged with six counts related tothe abduction and death. Prosecutors say Abdur-Raheem parked along the shoulder of theGarden State Parkway and threw or dropped the infant off theDriscoll Bridge into icy waters in February. Zara Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem's body was found along the banks ofthe Raritan River in April. The 22-year-old Galloway Township resident and former StocktonCollege Student also faces attempted murder charges for allegedlyassaulting the baby's maternal grandmother. The child's mother wasobtaining a restraining order against Abdur-Raheem. The incident motivated the state Attorney General's officeto broaden New Jersey's Amber Alert rules, to include domesticcases.

A New Jersey father accused of tossing his 3-month-old daughter to her death off a bridge pleaded not guilty Tuesday, as a judge ordered him to have no further contact with the child's mother.Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem sat silently as his attorney entered the plea in state Superior Court in New Brunswick.The 22-year-old Galloway Township resident is charged with murder and five other counts related to the infant's abduction and death. He remains jailed on $2.7 million bail.Abdur-Raheem is also charged with attempted murder for allegedly assaulting the baby's maternal grandmother, who was baby-sitting while the child's mother sought a restraining order against him.Prosecutors claim Abdur-Raheem abducted Zara Malani-lin Abdur from her grandmother's East Orange apartment on Feb. 16, choking and assaulting the woman and then hitting her with his van as she attempted to block his escape.Abdur-Raheem later parked on the shoulder of the Garden State Parkway over the Driscoll Bridge — which spans the Raritan River between Sayreville and Woodbridge — and threw or dropped the baby from the front passenger window, according to court papers.Police launched a massive search for the child. But she wasn't found until April, when people walking along the riverbank not far from the bridge came across an infant's body matching her description. An autopsy determined she had drowned.Deputy Attorney General Andrew C. Fried asked state Superior Court Judge Frederick DeVesa Tuesday to bar Abdur-Raheem from all further contact with the baby's mother, saying he had sent her a 10-page letter from jail. Fried declined to discuss the letter's content, but said it could prompt the state to pursue additional charges of harassment or witness tampering.Abdur-Raheem's attorney, Richard Klein, told the judge that the letter had been sent in response to a jail visit the baby's mother had initiated. Fried countered that the mother had only visited to ask Abdur-Raheem if their child was still alive, before the baby's body had been found.The judge asked Abdur-Raheem if he understood the order to have no further contact with the child's mother, to which the defendant, his cuffed hands resting in his lap, nodded and quietly replied: "Yes."The case, which New Jersey Attorney General Paula Dow has characterized as a tragic example of domestic violence, prompted a review of the state's guidelines for issuing Amber Alert broadcasts in response to reports of missing children.Dow ordered the review, and changes to the system, after it was discovered that no alert had been issued for four hours between the time the child was abducted and Abdur-Raheem was arrested, as state law discouraged the use of the alerts in domestic cases at the time.New Jersey police now issue the alerts even in cases of suspected parental involvement in a child's abduction.

Man charged in killing infant to seek lower bail

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. - May 2, 2011 (WPVI) -- A New Jersey father accused of tossing his 3-month-old daughter to her death off a bridge will seek to have his bail lowered.

Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem of Galloway Township pleaded not guilty to murder and other charges last fall and has been held on $2.7 million bail.

Abdur-Raheem was present for a court conference Monday in New Brunswick but did not speak. The defense did not say what it would seek for a new bail amount.

Prosecutors claim Abdur-Raheem abducted Zara Malani-lin Abdur from her grandmother's East Orange apartment in February 2010, assaulting the woman and then hitting her with his van. He then allegedly parked on the Driscoll Bridge on the Garden State Parkway and threw or dropped the baby into the river. The baby was found several weeks later along the riverbank.

http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/crime&id=8107421