MONMOUTH COUNTY PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE DELIVERS JUSTICE FOR TYRITA JULIUS, CLOSURE TO HER FAMILY AND FRIENDS
" After A Nearly Six Year Painstaking Investigation & Month Long Trial, Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office Brings Closure To The Horrific & Tragic Death Of Tyrita Julius."
September 6, 2021 By Art Fletcher Reporting For: Englebrook Independent News,
FREEHOLD, NJ.- Friday, September 3, 2021 Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Lori Linskey announced that a Monmouth County Jury has returned a Guilty Verdicts against the Tinton Falls, New Jersey woman who had arranged to have her girlfriend shot eight times nearly six years ago, before fatally strangling her several months later and then burying her body in the backyard of a Long Branch, New Jersey home.
Jennifer Sweeny, 38, of Tinton Falls, New Jersey was Convicted on Charges of First Degree Murder; First Degree Conspiracy to Commit Murder; Multiple Weapons Offenses; Second Degree Desegregation of Human Remains; and Fourth Degree Tampering with Physical Evidence in connection with the Death of Tyrita Julius, 41, of Linden, New Jersey. The Conviction marked the end of painstaking investigation, and a nearly month long trail in Monmouth County State Superior Court.
" The suffering endured by Tyrita Julius at the hands of someone who was suppose to care for her during the last several months of her life was unspeakable, and while Today's Verdict can't bring Tyrita back, we hope it offers some sense of solace and closure to her Friends and Family," Prosecutor Linskey stated on Friday. " I'd also like to recognize and thank the many Police Agencies in Monmouth and Union Counties that contributed to this investigation which featured a great number of moving parts and stands out as an excellent example of the power of collaboration in Law Enforcement."
On Tuesday, November 24, 2015, at approximately 7:16 p.m., Members of The Linden Police Department responded to the 900 Block of Middlesex Street in Linden, New Jersey on a report of a shooting.
Upon arrival, Police Officer found Ms. Julius, who sustained eight gunshot wounds, in the driver's seat of her vehicle, which had collided with a utility pole, a short distance from her home. Ms. Julius's teenage daughter who was seated in the passenger's seat of the vehicle had also sustained a gunshot wound.
The investigation into the shooting was ongoing when, on Wednesday, March 9, 2016, Ms. Julius's mother reported her daughter missing to both The Linden Police Department and The Long Branch Police Department. Authorities were told at that time that Tyrita had been spending time with a female friend in Tinton Falls, New Jersey the day before, but had failed to return home.
Investigators from The Union County Prosecutor's Office, as well as The Linden Police Department contacted The Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office about the investigation during the afternoon hours of Friday, March 11, 2016, and a joint investigation was initiated by members of those agencies.
As a result of the investigation, on Tuesday, August 16, 2016, Ms. Julius's body was discovered by Detectives during a search of the Long Branch home of Andre Harris, later identified as the gunman in the November, 2015 Shooting of Ms. Julius and her daughter. Ms. Julius's remains were discovered buried in the backyard, wrapped in two garbage bags, with an electrical cord around her neck.
Ms. Sweeney and Mr. Harris were Arrested and Charged, with a Monmouth County Grand Jury returning an indictment against both of them in December of 2016.
Mr. Harris later reached a plea agreement for a New Jersey State Prison Sentence with a 85% term of service before Parole Eligibility, pursuant to The No Early Release Act and agreed to testify at Ms. Sweeney's Trial. Ms. Sweeney now faces a Life in Prison without the possibility of Parole. Sentencing has been scheduled for Friday, November 19, 2021 in Monmouth County State Superior Court.
FILED UNDER SEPTEMBER 6, 2021: LAW, MONMOUTH: