British mother murdered 'in front of son' during Mauritius robbery

A British mother has been found murdered in her own home in Mauritius amid reports thieves may have smothered her in front of her ten-year-old son.

Janice Farman, 47, who is thought to originally be from Clydebank, Scotland, was found dead in her bed by police in Mauritius - the island where she has been living and working for several years - at around 1am on Friday.

Police believe Mrs Farman was killed during a robbery by three men and officials said her son, who was found in the property, has been passed into the care of a local child development unit.

A police spokesman said: "At about 1am on Friday, police received a report that there had been a case of murder in Albion.

"Police went to the property and found the woman lying in bed. The suspects drove away in the victim's car.

"The car has been found. It will be examined and we hope we will get evidence from the vehicle."

PECS Data Services, who Ms Farman had been working for in Mauritius, confirmed her death with an announcement on their website.

It read: "Last night our MD in Mauritius Janice Farman was brutally murdered in her own home.

"In view of these tragic events, we have decided to close our Mauritius office today, so we can make sure all our team have access to counsellors and as a mark of respect to a wonderful lady."

A Foreign Office spokesman has confirmed they are assisting the family of a British woman following her death in Mauritius and are in contact with the local authorities.