SAYREVILLE, N.J. -- A body found near a New Jersey river may
be that of a 3-month-old girl who police say was thrown off a
highway bridge by her father earlier this year.
Sgt. Stephen Jones says clothes and wrappings in which the child were found Saturday are consistent with the descriptions given of 3-month-old Zara Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem.
But he says the baby is considered unidentified until DNA testing or other means can prove her identity.
Police say the baby's father, Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem, confessed that he threw the infant off a bridge Feb. 16.
They say Abdur-Raheem had snatched the baby from her grandmother's arms several hours earlier while the child's mother was in court getting a restraining order against him.
Abdur-Raheem has pleaded not guilty to murder and other charges.
He is also charged with kidnapping, two assault counts and child endangerment.
Police say Abdur-Raheem forced his way into the grandmother's East Orange apartment, striking her in the face, choking her and pulling the baby from her arms before fleeing in a van.
The 60-year-old grandmother, whom 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 vehicle, authorities said.
Abdur-Raheem then headed toward southern New Jersey, and police say he told them he tossed the child from the Garden State Parkway's Driscoll Bridge, over the Raritan River, on his way.
Search teams using boats, helicopters and dogs found no sign of the baby as the search entered its third day Thursday.
State Police Sgt. Julian Castellanos said the mission was still a rescue attempt even though the odds of a baby surviving that long were slim.
The child's mother, Venetta Benjamin, who had sole custody of the infant, had sought a restraining order against Abdur-Raheem around the same time Tuesday afternoon that he is accused of showing up at her mother's East Orange apartment.
Sgt. Stephen Jones says clothes and wrappings in which the child were found Saturday are consistent with the descriptions given of 3-month-old Zara Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem.
But he says the baby is considered unidentified until DNA testing or other means can prove her identity.
Police say the baby's father, Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem, confessed that he threw the infant off a bridge Feb. 16.
They say Abdur-Raheem had snatched the baby from her grandmother's arms several hours earlier while the child's mother was in court getting a restraining order against him.
Abdur-Raheem has pleaded not guilty to murder and other charges.
He is also charged with kidnapping, two assault counts and child endangerment.
Police say Abdur-Raheem forced his way into the grandmother's East Orange apartment, striking her in the face, choking her and pulling the baby from her arms before fleeing in a van.
The 60-year-old grandmother, whom 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 vehicle, authorities said.
Abdur-Raheem then headed toward southern New Jersey, and police say he told them he tossed the child from the Garden State Parkway's Driscoll Bridge, over the Raritan River, on his way.
Search teams using boats, helicopters and dogs found no sign of the baby as the search entered its third day Thursday.
State Police Sgt. Julian Castellanos said the mission was still a rescue attempt even though the odds of a baby surviving that long were slim.
The child's mother, Venetta Benjamin, who had sole custody of the infant, had sought a restraining order against Abdur-Raheem around the same time Tuesday afternoon that he is accused of showing up at her mother's East Orange apartment.
