Crime & Safety

Husband Charged in Murder of Montclair Woman

Essex County prosecutor says Khalid Khan killed his estranged wife, Shazina Khan, in her Montclair apartment

A Bloomfield man has been arrested and charged with murder in the death of his estranged wife, according to Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray.

In a statement issued late Monday, Murray said that Khalid Khan, 42, was charged with murdering his wife, Shazina Khan, 31, whose body was found in her Montclair apartment around 12:30 a.m. Monday.

According to the prosecutor's office, the couple had had a history of domestic disputes, although it was unclear whether Shazina Khan had a restraining order against her husband.

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Montclair Police Chief David Sabagh said he wanted "to reassure the residents of Montclair this is a targeted incident. I would also like to commend the Montclair Police and the Homicide Task Force for the swift arrest."

The preliminary investigation showed Mrs. Khan had trauma to her body caused by a sharp object, but the cause and manner of death will be officially determined following an autopsy Tuesday.

The couple have been separated since 2009, according to a statement released by the prosecutor's office on Monday.

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The defendant, who is originally from Kenya, will be lodged in the Essex County Jail, in lieu of $1.5 million bail.

On Monday, an e-mail about the incident was sent out to parents of children at the Charles H. Bullock Elementary School in Montclair, where the victim’s daughter, Samera Khan, was a second grader.

At about 3 p.m. Monday, as the rest of the town was celebrating the Fourth of July, police were canvassing the neighborhood where the killing occurred. Stunned neighbors gathered on the front steps of 18 Wheeler St., the building where Shazina Khan died.

"I heard her screaming on my porch," a neighbor, Margot, told Patch. She was visibly shaken. “I know her and I know what happened to her. I can’t talk about it no more.”

She and another neighbor and friend, Karen, both of whom said they had lived in the building all their lives, asked that their last names not be used for reason of safety. 

“I’m scared. I’m really scared,” said Margot. When asked why, she replied, “I don’t know what’s going to happen.”

Karen said she wasn’t sure if the child was in the house at the time of the incident.

When Samera was mentioned, Margot looked ready to cry.

"Right now I don’t know what’s happening. The family was from England. I don’t know what they did with the child," she said, adding,
"(Police) were talking about DYFS (Department of Youth and Family Services) was supposed to come."

"Hopefully someone from the family came and got her," said Karen quietly.

"All I know is, it’s a tragedy," said Margot. 

The prosecutor’s office is asking anyone with information about the case to contact the tip line at (877) 847-7432.


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