NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - Adrian Lewis, husband of missing Shanitia Mikell Eure-Lewis, has been charged with first-degree murder and using a firearm in the commission of a felony in connection with the death of his wife, court documents say.
Virginia State Police reported Eure-Lewis missing on July 18, 2022,with her family and friends at Gethsemane Baptist Church being the last people to see her during Sunday’s church service.
An Ashanti Alert was issued for Eure-Lewis following her disappearance as well.
According to a criminal complaint, Eure-Lewis was last seen by her children having a verbal altercation with Lewis, then leaving the residence with him in his truck.
Eure-Lewis' sister, Deidra Brannon, told investigators that her sister and Lewis were having marital problems, and on July 5, 2022, Eure-Lewis told her husband she wanted to file for divorce.
On July 14, Lewis allegedly made suicidal ideations to Eure-Lewis, who removed all the firearms from their residence and brought them, along with her children, to her sister's house for safekeeping.
On Sunday, July 17, Lewis and Eure-Lewis came to Brannon's house to pick up their children at around 1:30 a.m. At 9:40 a.m. the same day, Lewis called Brannon saying his wife was having an affair and asking Brannon to take care of their children; he called her again around noon saying that he and Eure-Lewis had a "verbal altercation" and that Eure-Lewis "jumped out of [his] truck" near a Wawa gas station on Jefferson Avenue and Harpersville Road.
Newport News Police said cameras in the area do not corroborate Lewis' story.
Following this conversation, Brannon attempted to contact her sister but was unable to call her. She received several texts from Eure-Lewis' phone, but never verbally spoke to her.
She later learned that Lewis was in possession of Eure-Lewis' phone.
At around 3:45 p.m., Brannon was en route to Eure-Lewis' home when she saw Lewis' truck parked next to a dumpster in the parking lot of 6216 Jefferson Avenue. W
hen she went to investigate, Lewis was allegedly placing items in the dumpster; police said the items included a shovel with dirt, a brown purse and sandals, a blanket with a suspected handprint and several documents including Lewis' and Eure-Lewis' information.
Court documents also say that blood was later found in the front passenger seat of Lewis' truck, with a "significant amount" of blood found on the lower seat mount. Lewis said the blood was from his dog who had been shot by a neighbor, but detectives later confirmed during a search of Lewis' residence that both his dogs were healthy and had no gunshot wounds.
Lewis also allegedly bought a plane ticket to Jamaica departing the day after Eure-Lewis went missing.
Eure-Lewis has not been seen since the argument with Lewis in the driveway witnessed by her children. She has not contacted anyone by phone or text since her disappearance.
Police said Tuesday that they are still searching for her body. According to the NNPD, police have narrowed the search to a few specific locations and are not requesting the public’s assistance at this time in order to preserve evidence.
Lewis' first hearing will be Wednesday, July 19 at 10 a.m.
