Toronto man charged with 2nd-degree murder after his mother’s death
Joy Barnwell, originally from Lowmans Windward but residing in Canada, was murdered on Wednesday, 18, her son Michael Rawlins was charged with her murder.
Barnwell, 70, a resident of Toronto, was the victim of the city’s first homicide of 2023, Toronto police Const. Alex Li told CBC News late Thursday afternoon.
Li emphasized that this was an isolated incidence to comfort the public.
Michael Rawlins, a Toronto resident who is 27 years old, appeared in court on Thursday, according to Li.
Around 8:15 p.m. on Wednesday, emergency personnel were called to the intersection of Finch Avenue East and Seneca Hill Drive in North York where they discovered Barnwell in “medical distress with injuries.”
Later, she was declared dead on the spot.
The public is encouraged to come forward with any witnesses or anyone who may have heard or seen something strange in the vicinity, or to submit an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers.
