Forty year ago to the day, Assata Olugbala Shakur, who was then known as Joanne Chesimard, was involved in a gun battle that left a New Jersey state trooper dead. Today, Shakur has been placed on the FBI’s most wanted terrorists list, the first woman to earn the distinction, with a reward of $2 million being offered for her capture.
“She continues to flaunt her freedom in the face of this horrific crime,” State Police Superintendent Col. Rick Fuentes said at a news conference Thursday. Fuentes called the case “an open wound” for troopers in New Jersey and around the country.
The Justice Department has offered a $1 million reward for information leading to her capture. The additional money is being put up by the state of New Jersey through civil and criminal forfeiture funds and won’t fall on taxpayers, state Attorney General Jeffrey Chiesa said.






