A Goldsboro man faces charges of first degree murder and child abuse after police investigated the death of a 4-year old brought to UNC Wayne last week.

Umoja Jihad Bryant is expected to be in court today.

The girl’s body was taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Raleigh for an autopsy on March 3. It was determined during the autopsy that the cause of death was multiple blunt force trauma.

Original police reports indicated the child was 5-years old. She was 4.

During the investigation, a second juvenile victim was discovered with multiple injuries. He was taken to UNC Health Wayne and received treatment before being released. The second victim is a 5-year-old male that lives in the same home as the female victim.


Goldsboro Police say Umoja Jihad Bryant, was developed as a suspect and was subsequently charged with one count of 1st Degree Murder and one count of Felony Child Abuse in the death of the 4-year-old female victim. Bryant was also charged with one count of Felony Child Abuse for the injuries inflicted on the 5-year-old male victim. Bryant was arrested without incident on March 3 by the Goldsboro Police Department’s Investigative Services Bureau and Patrol Shift “C”. No further information will be released at this time.