A man from Virginia is facing a virtually certain life behind bars for the murder of his wife in the summer of 2022, even though her body has never been found.
Shanitia Eure-Lewis, aged 35, was last seen alive on July 17, 2022, according to the Newport News Police Department. The following day, she was reported missing, and the Virginia State Police declared her to be "in extreme danger."
Her husband, Adrian Lewis, aged 50, was charged the day after her disappearance.
After approximately 2 1/2 hours of deliberations, a jury in Newport News found Adrian Lewis guilty of first-degree murder on September 28, 2023, although they returned a not guilty verdict on a lesser charge of using a firearm in the commission of a felony.
Deputy Commonwealth's Attorney Valerie Spencer Muth expressed understanding of the jury's decision, stating, "They obviously felt like there was some reasonable doubt in that. But they came back with guilt on the first-degree murder [charge], so the Commonwealth is very satisfied."
Although the exact cause of Eure-Lewis's death could not be proven, the state was able to persuade the jury of her husband's guilt and responsibility.
During the trial, evidence emerged of a deeply jealous and hypocritical man. Witnesses testified that Lewis had told friends he believed his wife was cheating on him and had publicly threatened to kill her several times over his suspicion, all while leading a double life of his own with adulterous relationships spanning years.
The accusations against his wife were never substantiated and seemed to be more of an indirect admission of his own wrongdoing.
"She was part of our 8 o'clock worship," Gethsemane Baptist Church Pastor Dwight Riddick revealed about the missing woman. "As I understand it, she left to go home to get her two sons and bring them back to the next worship service but did not return to the next worship service."
Riddick testified in court about the defendant's alleged anger toward his wife even after her disappearance. He mentioned that Lewis had called him and said, "I just hope she rots in hell."
Church friend Mitchell Foreman stated that Eure-Lewis had expressed her desire to get a divorce about two weeks before her disappearance. Lewis, in response, alleged she must be cheating on him and declared, "I can't let her walk away from this."
Tiffany Foreman, a friend of Eure-Lewis for over 30 years, testified that Eure-Lewis had informed her she was planning to divorce Lewis five days before she vanished.
Lewis's suspicions of his wife's infidelity were allegedly not new, as he had publicly discussed his intentions to kill her if she cheated during a Christmas party in 2021, according to Mitchell Foreman's testimony.
In addition to his accusations, Lewis had also admitted to his own affairs during the holiday gathering, and he justified his actions by stating, "I'm from the street, and I handle things the street way."
Shortly after his wife's disappearance, Lewis purchased a plane ticket to Jamaica but was arrested just as he was about to board the plane.
Newport News Circuit Court Judge Bryant Sugg presided over the trial, which marked the first murder case in the jurisdiction to be tried without the victim's body, according to Newport News Commonwealth's Attorney Howard Gwynn.
Lewis is scheduled to be sentenced on January 19, 2024.
In another news, Donald Trump launched a scathing attack on New York's attorney general and the presiding judge as his civil fraud trial commenced on October 2. See detailed story here.
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