US announces federal charges against Indian national wanted for 2017 murder of New Jersey mother, son

New York: The US has announced federal charges against an Indian national wanted for his alleged involvement in the 2017 murder of a mother and her six-year-old son in New Jersey.

Nazeer Hameed, 38, was charged with the murder of an Indian woman, Sasikala Narra, 38 and her son Anish Narra inside an apartment in Maple Shade, New Jersey, in March 2017. 

FBI Newark on Monday announced federal charges against Hameed, who authorities say is "considered armed and dangerous.” The Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office and Maple Shade Police charged him with two counts of first-degree murder.

Hameed fled to India and now faces federal charges for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution in the District of New Jersey.

US authorities have said that Hameed returned to India six months after the killings and remains there to this day. As the investigation into the killings proceeded, he was identified as a person of interest after it was revealed he was stalking the husband and father of the victims, Hanumanth Narra.

A state warrant was issued for Hameed’s arrest, and the FBI has offered a reward of up to USD 50,000 for information leading to his arrest or conviction. Information about Hameed is listed on the FBI's Most Wanted website. 

Last year, then New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy had “called and sent a letter” to Indian Ambassador to the US Vinay Kwatra “requesting the assistance" of the Government of India in Hameed’s extradition. 

Stressing that the “heinous crime shocked” the state, Murphy had said New Jersey stands ready to cooperate fully with the Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs, as well as the Justice Department, State Department and FBI “to facilitate the extradition process in accordance with both Indian law and the terms of our bilateral treaty.”

Murphy had conveyed his "profound gratitude” to Kwatra for his “prompt attention to this matter and for the continued partnership between our governments.”

On the evening of March 23, 2017, officers from the Maple Shade Police Department were called to an apartment complex after the bodies of Sasikala and Anish Narra were discovered inside their home, the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office (BCPO) had said in a statement.

An autopsy determined they each died from multiple slash wounds to their necks. Anish Narra was nearly decapitated by his attacker, and the post-mortem examination revealed several defensive wounds on the bodies of both victims.

“The scene that day was unimaginable,” Maple Shade Police Chief Christopher Fletcher had said in the statement.

“Those who responded saw the carnage of a mother and her young child who spent their final moments fighting for their lives,” Fletcher added.

Hameed lived in the same apartment complex as the Narras and worked in the same IT company as Hanumanth Narra.

The announcement of the charges against Hameed was delayed while investigators attempted to gain additional evidence and worked with federal law enforcement partners to seek his extradition from India, authorities said.

BCPO had said that while analysing the physical evidence collected from the crime scene, it was determined that a tiny droplet of blood collected by investigators did not come from either victim. It was later determined that the blood was the same type as Hameed's and belonged to a male with Central Asian ancestry.

Multiple “unsuccessful” attempts were made to collaborate with officials in India to collect a DNA sample from Hameed.

“In October 2020, the Central Bureau of Investigation in India advised the Federal Bureau of Investigation that Nazeer Hameed refused to provide a DNA sample,” authorities had said.

In March 2023, a Mutual Legal Assistance request was made to the government of India, asking that Hameed’s DNA be collected via a court order. The US Justice Department received acknowledgement from the Ministry of Home Affairs that they had received the request, but it was never fulfilled, they said.

Ultimately, it was through a request from the Prosecutor’s Office to Hameed’s employer that a DNA sample was finally obtained, connecting him to the killings. An examination of the laptop’s keyboard generated a DNA profile that was determined to be consistent with the DNA from the unknown blood droplet at the murder scene.

BCPO Chief of Investigations Patrick Thornton said, “There is no doubt in our minds” that Hameed committed this crime and expressed hope that he will be extradited.