‘A heartbreaking, senseless act of violence’: Missing woman found dead behind ‘secret wall’ in home

The body of 28-year-old Renia Lewis, who had been reported missing just days earlier, was discovered on Tuesday hidden behind a “secret wall” inside a Northern California home. Lewis was last seen on Friday, and the Vallejo Police Department launched an investigation after she was officially reported missing on Sunday.

The initial search for Lewis quickly led investigators to a specific home on 14th Street. From the jump, officers saw “indications that the missing woman may have been inside the residence at some point before going missing,” per the police statement, so they had a pretty good idea this was the place to look.

Now, to be fair, the police conducted an immediate search, moving through the rooms, checking closets, and looking in all the usual places a person could hide. Of course, they couldn’t find Lewis. It sounds like the person responsible did everything they could to conceal the entry, and that initial sweep just wasn’t enough to expose the horrific truth of what was hidden away.

Missing woman found dead in the wall

The situation got serious fast. On Monday, the police activated an Ebony Alert for Lewis. If you haven’t heard of it, the Ebony Alert is a system specifically designed to help find missing Black women and children, and it’s awesome that the department has this tool in use. Along with that, the police brought in the big guns, asking the FBI for help. You can tell at this point that the case had shifted from a standard missing person’s report to something much more worrying.

This time around, the officers returned to the 14th Street home on Tuesday, acting on “new investigative information”. This is where the whole thing just goes from concerning to straight-up chilling. They performed a much more thorough search, and that’s when they discovered the hidden entry to the attic. This was the “concealed entry” that was shielding Lewis’s body. I’m sure finding that hidden wall was a massive break in the case, like the difference between searching a regular house and searching a house that’s been specifically altered.

Almost immediately, Douglas Irwin Shaw, a 41-year-old man, was named as the suspect in her killing and was arrested. It’s shocking how quickly the case progressed once the body was found. Shaw didn’t make things difficult for detectives, allegedly telling them that he was responsible for the crime and providing a statement admitting to what he did. He was subsequently booked into the Solano County Jail on suspicion of murder. It’s awful that a life was cut short, but at least you’re not left wondering for long whether or not they got the right guy.

In a statement following the arrest, Police Chief Jason Ta summed up the tragedy. He made it clear that the department understood the severity of the situation and the community’s pain, saying:

“This was a heartbreaking, senseless act of violence that has no place in our community. I am proud of our officers and detectives for making an arrest and solving this case. Above all, our thoughts are with the decedent’s family during this incredibly difficult time.”