Antoinette Stephen, 27, was charged with first degree murder and other charges in the killing of Pakistani-American woman Nazish Noorani, 26, in Boonton, New Jersey on August 16.
Noorani's husband, Brooklyn, New York-native Kashif Parvaiz, 26, was also charged in the murder. He admitted his involvement in the shooting death of his wife as she pushed their three-year-old son in a stroller, Morris County Prosecutor Robert Bianchi said at a press conference.
Parvaiz is being held on a $1 million bail, while Stephen is being held in Boston on a $5 million bail.
"Within hours of the crime, it was obvious to investigators that this was sadly the alleged handy work of the victim's husband who allegedly did the unthinkable and plotted to murder his wife, after a religious celebration," Bianchi said.
"A subsequent exhaustive investigation by law enforcement determined that Kashif Parvaiz and Antoinette Stephen allegedly plotted the murder of Nazish Noorani for a significant period of time," a release from the prosecutor said.
Stephen was arrested in her home in Billerica, near Boston. The authorities traced the cell phone and car involved in the incident as registered to her mother Kumjunjamma Stephen.
According to the prosecutor, the police received 911 calls about 11:13 pm about the shooting.
Police found Noorani and Parvaiz with gun shot wounds. She died at the scene. Parvaiz, not hurt seriously, was later questioned by the police. He initially claimed that he and his wife were allegedly shot by one black male, one white male, and a third unknown male shouting slurs about "terrorists."
But later he changed the story and claimed the attackers as three black males. The police summoned the telephone records and found text messages between Stephen and Parvaiz.
Two handguns were retrieved from his black Infiniti SUV.
Noorani was shot four times in the chest and died instantly. The boy was not hurt.
Parvaiz sustained superficial wounds in the shooting, which authorities said was part of the plan.
The couple also has a 5-year-old, who was not present at the scene.
The prosecutor said Parvaiz conspired with Stephen, whom he had known from Brooklyn, to have his wife killed because of issues in the couple's six-year marriage. Parvaiz was upset that Noorani had spoken negatively about his family.
About relationship between Parvaiz and Stephen, Bianchi said, "There is obviously a relationship. I'm not saying it is a physical relationship," he said.
Parvaiz has admitted to several affairs, officials said.
"Initially, upon learning from the defendant/husband that this may have been a bias crime, we were particularly concerned, as we are dedicated to the principal that we are all entitled to live in this country free from the social ills of prejudice, bias and bigotry," a statement from the prosecutor said. It reassured the Islamic community.
"We want our Islamic community, our brothers and sisters, to be assured that we would never tolerate any bias crime and would stop at nothing to ensure that this community was protected from any form of bias or prejudice. After considerable investigative analysis law enforcement quickly concluded that this was not a bias crime," he said.
"We as a law enforcement community are especially saddened over many issues pertaining to this case. The violence of the matter, coupled with the death of this beautiful woman in front of her child, was especially compelling to all of us."
"And, the fact that the victim was celebrating Ramadan, a time dedicated in the Islamic faith to the worthy goals of patience, spirituality, humility and submissiveness to God, made this case especially compelling to us. So too, that this matter was allegedly so well thought out, planned, plotted and orchestrated is chilling to say the least."
"Regardless of our differences in religion, this country is founded upon respect for peoples of all faiths and religions. I can assure the community at large that on behalf of the Morris County law enforcement community, our prayers and sympathies are humbly extended to the family, friends, as well as the Islamic community, who lost such a precious jewel in their lives."
"This case once again underscores the fact that domestic violence knows no divisions of faiths or backgrounds. We encourage all that are abused by their partners to find the courage to end the cycle of mental, physical, and emotional violence before it is too late."
Parvaiz initially told the police the shooting was an accident and that he had not intended for it to happen. He also said he did not want to go to jail and that he should be with his children, the affidavit said.
Noorani's sister, Lubnar Choudhry, who hosted Noorani and Parvaiz at her home for Ramadan dinner just before the couple were shot, said there was trouble in their marriage, according to local media reports.
Parvaiz had lived in Boston for several months earlier this year. The couple were planning to return to Boston. Parvaiz had told family members he was enrolled in a Ph.D. program at Harvard University, which the university denied.
In a message on August 12, Stephen said: 'You hang in there. Freedom is just around ur corner.'
On August 14, Parvaiz texted Stephen: 'Well I need to speak to you and explain to you how to approach the situation. I'll be depositing money tomorrow morning and I'll see you tomorrow evening night.'
Hours before the shooting, Stephen sent a message: "Call me when u can. delete all messages from phone. I wont message from here on."
The Star-Ledger obtained a police report from Boston showing that Parvaiz was arrested six months ago for allegedly assaulting a woman. The woman, not Noorani, was not identified, and it is unclear whether it was Stephen.
Noorani's relatives revealed that she had feared for her safety. 'One day you'll find me dead and it's going to be Kashi who did it, so save this text. You'll need it," she wrote to her brother Kaleem Noorani, according to a cousin.
