Soon after the sun rose, lifelong St Lawrence resident, 56-year-old Laura Springer, was found dead in her home.
And the unnatural death has left the Christ Church community in a state of shock.
“It got the whole neighbourhood shake up. I know what I’m telling you, because we never went through anything like this here yet,” one weeping neighbour told the DAILY NATION yesterday morning.
“The most you would hear about in St Lawrence is of people over there fighting or someone snatched someone’s bag,” she added, pointing to the nightlife hub St Lawrence Gap.
The woman, who did not give her name, said she was preparing to go to work when she got the call about Springer’s death. She added she and several other residents became too distraught to proceed to their jobs.
The woman described the deceased mother of one as “chirpy” and “nice”.
Another resident said she was “a friendly lady, a very sweet person”.
“She’s the type of person that would speak to everybody and make a joke with everybody. She didn’t deserve to die like that,” she said quietly.
Springer’s father, Eudalric Brathwaite, was overcome with emotion and was unable to comment.
Her sister, Sandra Brathwaite, who spoke on behalf of the family, said they were in a state of disbelief.
“First I thought the person calling had made a mistake. I had to tell them repeat and they said, ‘I tell you come now, aunty; somebody kill mummy’.
“I couldn’t even hold up myself; my son had to ask me if he could stay home and I said, “sure”.
Brathwaite added her sister was “fun-loving, outgoing, humorous; she was like a comedian. It’s just a shock”.
Meanwhile, Springer’s estranged husband, Carson Springer, too was upset.
“I think crime in Barbados is really getting out of hand when you can’t be in your own home and safe. Right now I don’t feel right about this,” he said.
As several police officers combed the scene at Springer’s one-storey wall house, new police public relations officer, Acting Inspector Rodney Inniss, said they were treating the death as an unnatural one.
He said police received a report around 6:30 a.m. and upon entering the home, found the lifeless body of Springer.
Expressing his condolences to the grief-stricken family, Inniss said the force would do all it could to bring the matter to closure. (AD)