A young mother of three who disappeared just days before the party she had been planning for her 2-year-old son’s birthday has been found dead, police said Friday.
Merrillville police said Diamond Lewis' body was found Thursday in the basement of an abandoned home in the 1400 block of West 18th Avenue.
"All indications point to domestic violence," police said in a release.
An autopsy found she died of asphyxiation due to stragulation and her death was ruled a homicide.
Two people are in custody in connection with her death, authorities said. Charges were pending as of Friday morning.
Lewis was last seen with her infant daughter Morgan last Tuesday, as she got in a car with the father of the 2-month-old girl.
Her ex-boyfriend, Darran Barnes, said he picked up Lewis and Morgan from a Walgreens in Merrillville, Indiana after she asked for a ride because her boyfriend was using her car.
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Barnes picked Lewis up sometime between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. and drove her and her daughter to 15th and Virginia in Gary, where Lewis' boyfriend had taken her car. That’s when he says Lewis got into a vehicle with Morgan’s father and drove off.
The last time Barnes spoke to her was in a text message later that morning.
“She took off and she texted me that morning like, ‘Thank you,’” he said. “I said you’re welcome and that was the last I heard from her.”
Lewis’ father, Cornelius Lewis, said it is not like his daughter to disappear, especially without her children.
“I am really worried because this is something Diamond has never done before,” he said.
Cornelius Lewis noted his daughter had been planning a celebration for her 2-year-old son’s birthday, set for this weekend.
“There is no way Diamond would miss that,” he said.
Police said 2-month-old Morgan has been found safe.
