Reward Offered in Lewis Elwin Anniversary Murder Appeal
One year on a £20,000 reward is being offered for information
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Detectives investigating the unsolved murder of Lewis Elwin have launched a fresh appeal for information and witnesses a year on from the fatal stabbing of the 20-year-old in broad daylight.
The Met has also announced that a reward of £20,000 is being offered for information leading to the arrest, identification and conviction of those responsible for Lewis' tragic death.
His brothers, Byron and Aaron, are also calling for people to come forward to police with information about the incident.
Police were originally called on Monday 18 April 2016 at just before 4pm to Penwortham Road where Lewis was found collapsed on the street after being attacked with a knife. Despite extensive efforts to save his life by emergency services, Lewis was pronounced dead at the scene.
Detectives have issued images of a suspect vehicle seen in the area at the same time as the murder in a bid to generate information on its occupants and movements before and after the attack. The five-door silver Peugeot 307 was found abandoned and burnt out later the same day in Putney Park Lane.
The car was advertised for sale on a website and sold to a new owner on 9 March 2016 - a few weeks before the murder.
The homicide team is also making a special plea to parents and carers of pupils at Penwortham Primary School, very close to where Lewis was attacked. His stabbing coincided with the end of the school day and the street would have been busy with people picking up their children.
From piecing together a timeline as part of their investigation, detectives know that on the day of his death Lewis was seen walking towards Mitcham Lane at about 3.30pm, having been dropped off by a family member in Moyser Road, at the junction with Ribblesdale Road.
While Lewis was in Moyser Road, he called a friend at 3.36pm and they made arrangements to meet.
Minutes later, Lewis had been stabbed once and fatally wounded. At 3.40pm, he was seen struggling to run along Penwortham Road from the direction of Moyser Road. He managed to carry on for around a minute until when he collapsed at the bottom of Penwortham Road near its junction with Thrale Road and an ambulance was called. Police carrying out patrols nearby arrived shortly afterwards. The post-mortem examination later showed the cause of his death as a stab wound to the chest.
Images of the suspect vehicle, registration KP03 ZTD, show the car in the minutes after the murder. The Peugeot was first spotted around 3.30pm in the area of Thrale Road and Penwortham Road. It made a circuit around the school and then left along Ullathorne Road where it was captured on camera.
Detective Inspector Will Reynolds, from the Homicide and Major Crime Command, said, "We believe this vehicle is connected to Lewis's murder and are appealing for anyone with knowledge of it and in particular who was inside it that day to come forward. We need to find out who was using it at the time, where it was before the murder and where it went afterwards before finally being burnt out.
"We also urgently need to speak to people picking up their children at Penwortham Primary School as we know pupils would have been leaving with their parents or carers around the time of the attack at 3.30-3.40pm. If you were in Penwortham Road and Moyser Road at the time and saw something please contact us. Lewis was only stabbed once and it may be what you saw didn't appear to be a stabbing but a punch or a push. Please come forward and tell us if you saw something odd or suspicious.
"We are now offering a substantial financial reward of £20,000 as part of our efforts to progress this case. Someone out there might have what they think is an insignificant bit of information that could actually prove the key to piecing together what happened. Please help us to bring to justice whoever is responsible for this terrible crime."
Byron, one of Lewis' brothers, added, "Lewis having his life cut short in this terrible manner devastated our family and deprived us of a much loved brother, son and uncle. A year later, we still miss him terribly and we are all still suffering from the lasting knock-on effects this has caused. Please help the police to find out who did this and get justice for Lewis - please come forward."
Anyone with information can speak to officers at the incident room at Sutton on 0208 721 4005 or alternatively they can pass information anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Two 19-year-old men who were arrested on suspicion of murder in May 2016 and subsequently bailed, were informed in March this year that they would not be proceeded with.
April 19, 2017
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