Homicide Bureau detectives remain baffled as to the motive for the killing of a 54-year-old housewife yesterday. The victim, Joyce Lewis, was found inside her home with a gunshot wound to the chest. Police said they had no motive for the woman's killing but were working along certain lines of investigations. In almost identical fashion, prominent dentist Dr Mervyn Mc Laren, 64, who lived just a stone's throw away from Lewis, was shot and killed on August 8, 2009 while sitting at the back of his home. He had been involved in a land squabble, police said. Lewis, police sources said, was at home with her son when she was killed. Investigators said there were two previous acts of violence at her home, which were aimed at driving the Lewis' away from their property.
In 2009 and 2010, Lewis' home at 88 Western Main Road, Carenage, was fire-bombed. According to police information, at about 11 am yesterday, Lewis was alerted to persistent barking from her pet dog. She left her teenage son watching television and went to investigate. Moments later, the boy reported hearing several gunshots coming from the back of their house. As he went to investigate, he saw his mother lying at the doorway to his bedroom, with a bullet wound to her chest. She died within seconds. Detective Sgts Henry Dann and Andrew Lawrence led a team of detectives who combed for clues. The victim's son was being interviewed up to late yesterday to help shed light on his mother's murder.