Cops say son found his murdered mom at home in Edison, NJ

🔴 NJ man charged with murder

🔴 Woman was attacked in her home

🔴 Son found his mother

EDISON — A 37-year-old township man has been accused of stabbing a woman to death in her home on Sunday, where her son made the gruesome discovery.

Joan Franklin Polanco was charged with first-degree murder, in connection with the death of 37-year-old Edison resident Lizbeth Benitez-Rivera, Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone announced.

Just after 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, July 21, Edison police received a 911 call reporting a stabbing on Horizon Drive.

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Benitez-Rivera’s son had been sleeping in his room, before he awoke to find his mother’s lifeless body, according to Ciccone.

Investigators found that Polanco was seen entering the bedroom with a knife and leaving the residence shortly after, police said.

Later Sunday, Polanco was found by the New York City Police Department and arrested on murder and third-degree unlawful possession of a weapon.

Police did not share details about who saw Polanco's arrival and exit — or relationship between the defendant and victim.

Anyone with potential information on the case was asked to call Detective Clint Hetzell of the Edison Police Department at 732-248-7400 or Detective Javier Morillo of the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office at 732-745-8843.

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