Mauritius thieves murder British woman in her bed with son, 10, in house
A BRITISH woman has been murdered in a robbery at her home in Mauritius, leaving her body for her 10-year-old son to discover.
Janice Farman, 47, may have been smothered with a pillow by the thieves, who stole jewellery and money and escaped in her car.
Police were called to the property in the village of Albion on the Indian Ocean island at about 1am yesterday and discovered Ms Farman’s body in bed. They found her 10-year-old autistic son in the property and have passed him into the care of the child development unit.
Local reports say that a colleague of Ms Farman said he had been contacted by the boy, who had found his mother in the early hours of Friday and told him: “My mum’s mouth is covered in blood and she is not breathing.”
In a social media post, the colleague of Ms Farman said: “He clearly had no idea what was going on and he was simply in a state of shock. We called the police and it was later confirmed she did not make it.”
Police have launched an investigation and are hunting three suspects. The car has been found and will be examined by specialists. A spokesman said: “At about 1am on Friday, police received a report that there had been a case of murder in Albion.
“Police went to the property and found the woman lying in bed. The suspects drove away in the victim’s car. The car has been found. It will be examined and we hope we will get evidence from the vehicle.”
Ms Farman, thought to be originally from Clydebank, West Dunbartonshire, was managing director of PECS Data Services in Mauritius.
Stephen Littlechild, group MD of PECS Data Services, said: “Last night our managing director in Mauritius Janice Farman was brutally murdered in her own home.
“In view of these tragic events, we have decided to close our Mauritius office today, so we can make sure all our team have access to counsellors and as a mark of respect to a wonderful lady. Our thoughts are with Janice’s family, friends and colleagues.”
A colleague said: “She is the most kind-hearted lady I have met in my life. She would never hesitate to offer her help as and when needed.”
Albion is known as a robbery hotspot and Ms Farman is believed to have reported the theft of her laptop a fortnight ago. A Foreign Office spokesman has confirmed they are assisting the family of a British woman following her death in Mauritius and are in contact with the local authorities.