Prosecutors say a Leonia woman collapsed outside a Fort Lee restaurant after drinking tea laced with a benzodiazepine.

FORT LEE, NJ — A woman who went to a restaurant to question an acquaintance about unauthorized banking activity instead drank poisoned tea and collapsed while leaving, according to Bergen County prosecutors.

Rohweniven Bacani, 52, of Hackensack, is charged with third-degree aggravated assault following a weeks-long investigation into the September 8 encounter in Fort Lee.

The victim had arranged the meeting to discuss suspicious activity in financial accounts to which Bacani had shared access, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced. Investigators allege Bacani arrived first and had a cup of tea waiting.

The woman drank some but stopped after noticing an unusual taste. She collapsed outside the restaurant and later awoke in a hospital without knowing how she had gotten there, prosecutors said.

Investigators trace medical emergency to tea

Leonia police learned September 11 that a resident was hospitalized following a serious medical episode that might have involved poisoning. The department contacted the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, launching a joint investigation.

The victim, who spent several days hospitalized and is now recovering, told investigators she believed an acquaintance had poisoned her.

Detectives determined that Bacani had added a benzodiazepine, a controlled dangerous substance, to the tea, prosecutors allege. Authorities did not identify the specific drug or the amount allegedly used.

Detectives arrest Bacani outside her home

Bacani was charged October 14. Detectives located her outside her Hackensack residence the following day and arrested her.

She was taken to Bergen County Jail pending a first appearance in Superior Court in Hackensack. The charge is an allegation, and she is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.