Romesh C. Sukhdeo

First Assistant Prosecutor

Romesh C. Sukhdeo is the First Assistant Prosecutor at the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office in Newark, New Jersey. He is the son of a Guyanese father and a black Jamaican mother who immigrated to the United States from the West Indies in the 1960s. He has been a dedicated career prosecutor for over 24 years. He has been certified by the New Jersey Supreme Court as a criminal trial attorney on two occasions.

The Essex County Bar Association bestowed on him the Criminal Trial Attorney Achievement Award in 2013. Prior to becoming First Assistant, he served as a senior Assistant Prosecutor in the ECPO Homicide Task Force and the Director of the Essex County Narcotics Task Force, where he managed and litigated narcotics and wiretap investigations. Later, he became Trial Chief and Director of the Adult Trial Section.

As an Assistant Prosecutor, he has tried numerous homicide and high-profile cases, including State v. Jose Carranza et al., the infamous Newark schoolyard murders; State v. Rasul McNeil-Thomas, which involved the shooting death of Newark Police Officer William Johnson; State v. Nicholas Welch which involved the murder of Seton Hall University freshman Jessica Moore; State v. Preye Roberts which involved the shooting and attempted murder of Fairfield Police Officer Gerald Veneziano and many other major cases. He has devoted much of his career to homicide cases and the victims/survivors of violent crimes.

Because of his empathy, candor, and care, First Assistant Prosecutor Sukhdeo has built a special bond with the families of those whose cases he handled, staying in contact with them years after the cases have been resolved.