Man charged with murder of 55-year-old Lansing woman

A man has been charged with the murder of a 55-year-old woman found beaten to death late Sunday in her home in south suburban Lansing.

Lake County (Indiana) sheriff’s police received information that a woman had been murdered and her boyfriend, who was wounded, had fled the scene, according to a statement from Lansing police.

Sheriff’s police found 34-year-old Joseph Manfred sitting in a vehicle owned by 55-year-old Janice Kuc in the parking lot of a bar in Shelby, Indiana, police said. Manfred allegedly assaulted the officers before being taken into custody.

The sheriff’s department requested that Lansing police check on Kuc at her apartment in the 18000 block of Wentworth Avenue.

She was pronounced dead at her home at 12:07 a.m. Monday, authorities said. An autopsy Tuesday found she suffered multiple injuries in a beating, and her death was ruled a homicide.

Manfred admitted to killing Kuc, according to police. An arrest warrant has been issued charging first-degree murder, and his extradition to Illinois is pending.

He remains in custody in Crown Point, Indiana, where he will also face charges.