NEWARK, DE — A Newark man has been charged with murder after police said officers responding to a reported CPR call Friday night discovered his mother fatally stabbed inside their home.
According to the New Castle County Division of Police, officers responded around 11:45 p.m. to a residence in the unit block of Three Rivers Court for a report of CPR in progress.
Police said officers encountered David Lewis, 29, who told investigators he had left the residence and later returned home to find his mother injured inside a bedroom.
Authorities said officers entered the residence and located 60-year-old Valerra Lewis suffering from multiple stab wounds to her upper body. She was pronounced dead at the scene, according to investigators.
Police reported officers also discovered a knife covered in blood inside the residence, along with what investigators described as large amounts of blood throughout the home and a strong odor of cleaning products.
Detectives from the Criminal Investigations Unit and Evidence Detection Unit later assumed the investigation.
According to investigators, detectives determined during the investigation that David Lewis allegedly stabbed his mother multiple times and later attempted to destroy evidence by cleaning items inside the residence.
Authorities said Lewis was taken into custody and charged with first-degree murder, possession of a deadly weapon during the commission of a felony, providing a false statement to law enforcement, and tampering with physical evidence.
Police said Lewis was arraigned in Justice of the Peace Court 11 and committed to the Howard R. Young Correctional Institution in lieu of $1,055,178 cash bail.
All suspects, arrestees, and defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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