Death penalty sought for Pa. man in baby's death
Posted: November 7, 2013 - 3:56am
MEDIA, Pa. (AP) -- Prosecutors say they intend to seek the death penalty against a Pennsylvania man accused of kidnapping and killing his girlfriend's 7-month-old son in August.
Thirty-year-old Ummad Rushdi pleaded not guilty Wednesday in Delaware County Court to charges including criminal homicide and murder in the first, second and third degree.
Police say the York man kidnapped 7-month-old Hamza Ali in early August from Rushdi's parents' home in the Philadelphia suburb of Upper Darby.
Investigators believe Rushdi killed the child and disposed of the body, although an extensive search failed to locate him. Police say Rushdi has claimed the child's death was accidental and has refused to disclose the location of the body.
Rushdi and the boy's mother, Zainab Gaal, shared a home in the York suburbs with Rushdi's brother and others.