PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Police have a suspect in custody connected with the beating death of a Philadelphia mother found over the weekend in a back alley in Strawberry Mansion.
Philadelphia Police said 30-year-old Dawaun Lewis beat 45-year-old Keisha Farlow to death in a back alley near 24th Street and Lehigh Avenue early Sunday morning, June 7. Her body was discovered hours later and officers found bloody bricks nearby.
Investigators scoured the area for video surveillance footage and Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore said they found key evidence of Farlow walking with two suspects.
“They are walking in the area of this alleyway, and you see them go out of the frame and then immediately, when you see them minutes later, the decedent is not with them,” said Vanore.
Lewis was identified through a tip received by police after some of the surveillance footage was released. He was charged with murder four years ago in Indianapolis after being accused of fatally shooting his roommate, but was acquitted by a jury. Lewis also has a criminal record in New Jersey.
He now faces murder, robbery and related charges. Police have not identified the other suspect in the case.
Farlow was a dedicated mother of four children, including an almost 1-year-old baby.
