Tasneem Diwan is accused of murdering Safia Diwan.
AB Wire
An Indian American woman, Tasneem Diwan, 45, in East Windsor, New Jersey, has been charged with the murder of her mother-in-law, Safia Diwan, 73.
Police say Tasneem Diwan was found at the Tropicana Casino in Atlantic City when she was taken into custody, reported News 12 New Jersey.
Diwan had been wanted for questioning since last Tuesday when the body of Safia Diwan was found in the front office of the family’s home in East Windsor. Investigators say Diwan struck her mother-in-law in the head numerous times with an unknown object.
The next day, police announced Diwan was wanted and last seen in her minivan. It was not announced that she was a suspect.
The Mercer County prosecutor says that Diwan was spotted Friday night in the bus terminal of the Tropicana. She was immediately held by security and taken into custody.
The local ABC6 channel reported Diwan is charged with one count of murder, one count of possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and one count of unlawful possession of a weapon. Her bail was set at $1 million.
“It’s just really sad,” neighbor Dan McDonough told Action News. “I know that they are great people, a nice family, and so it’s really a terrible tragedy. It’s just shocking and upsetting.”
McDonough says he knows the Diwan family casually, to say hello to in passing.
Dr. Nauman Diwan, the victim’s son and the woman’s husband, is a local internist.
Sources say Tasneem Diwan suffers from mental health issues, something neighbors say they were unaware of.
“Nothing that I saw that made me think they are anything but a nice, normal American family living here in the suburbs,” McDonough said.