By: Richard L. Smith
A Newark woman faces decades in state prison after a jury convicted her of attempting to murder a brother and sister during a violent armed robbery in Newark last year.
According to Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II, Tia Roulhac, 43, was found guilty on October 29, 2026, following approximately two hours of jury deliberations.
Prosecutors said the incident occurred around 10:08 a.m. on February 19, 2025, near South 17th Street and 19th Avenue.
The victims, Comfort Kollie, 41, and her brother, Moses Kromah, 39, were traveling in Kollie’s Toyota RAV4 when Roulhac, driving a Ford F-150 pickup truck, cut off their vehicle.
Authorities said Roulhac approached the driver’s side while pointing a handgun at the siblings and demanded Kromah’s jacket.
After Kromah handed over the jacket, Roulhac fired two shots, striking him in the neck and his sister in the chest.
Prosecutors said Roulhac fled but later returned to the 400 block of South 17th Street, where she accidentally shot herself in the groin with the same handgun.
All three were transported to University Hospital for treatment.
Investigators later recovered the firearm beneath the porch of a nearby residence.
The jury convicted Roulhac of two counts of attempted murder, armed robbery, multiple weapons offenses, and possession of a ghost gun, hollow-nose ammunition and a large-capacity magazine.
Assistant Prosecutors Cara Brady and Jenna Ventola prosecuted the case.
Following the verdict, Brady said the conviction sends a message that individuals responsible for violent crimes will be held accountable.
Ventola also thanked investigators from the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office and Newark Police Division, along with the victims for their courage throughout the case.
Roulhac is scheduled to be sentenced on January 15, 2027. She faces up to 20 years in New Jersey State Prison for each first-degree offense.