British woman murdered next to her son in Mauritius wanted to come home, ex-husband says

Police are hunting three suspects but have made no arrests

Janice Farman (Facebook)

A Scottish woman killed in a robbery in Mauritius next to her autistic son was planning to return to the UK, her ex-husband has said.

Janice Farman was the victim of another robbery just a fortnight ago, said Jean-Baptiste Moutou.

Police were called after Ms Farman’s son alerted friends that his mother had been attacked.

The robbers reportedly tied up Gavin, 10, as they beat his mother, then smothered her to death with a pillow. They fled in her car, having stolen jewellery and electronic devices.

Mr Moutou told local media that his ex-wife Ms Farman, a 47-year-old managing director of a data services company, had decided to return home after the first robbery.

He said: "I spoke to her on the phone and she was fine but she said she wanted to leave Mauritius and return to Scotland.

"She asked me to help get proceedings under way."

The couple separated last year.

Ms Farman had only recently moved to the Albion area on the west of the island because of the "beautiful beaches", Mr Moutou said.

Gavin has been handed to local social services by police officers. No arrests have yet been made in the hunt for the three suspects.

One Albion resident told the Scottish Sun: “We are not used to living in fear, but what happened with this lady is scary.

“There is a big problem where street lights are off or defective.

Ms Farman, thought to originally be from Clydebank, West Dunbartonshire, was managing director of PECS Data Services in Mauritius.

The company’s managing director Stephen Littlechild paid tribute to a “truly wonderful woman” who “devoted her life to her boy”.

“Our thoughts are with Janice’s family, friends and colleagues and we would ask at this sad time that you respect the privacy of everyone close to Janice,” he said.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We are assisting the family of a British woman following her death in Mauritius and are in contact with the local authorities."