91-year-old woman found murdered in home

  Eyewitness NewsELIZABETH (WABC) -- Police in Elizabeth, New Jersey are trying to solve the murder of a 91-year-old woman inside her home.

The killing happened on Thursday in what authorities believe was a robbery attempt.

Annette Hempel lived on the first floor of a two family home at 673 Jefferson Avenue in Elizabeth.

She was last seen alive by a family member who lives on the second floor around 2:30 p.m. on Thursday. When the family member returned a few hours later they found Hempel on the floor of the living room unresponsive, said prosecutor Theodore J. Romankow.

She was pronounced dead at the scene at 6:21p.m.

The medical examiner ruled her death a homicide, but how she was killed has not been released.

A nearly life-long resident of the city Hempel was known in the neighborhood as a kind woman.

"Everyone deserves to feel safe in their home," said Romankow. "This is nothing but a senseless and brutal act against a defnelsess woman. As with all homicides we will use every available resource to make sure the killer is captured."

Union County Crime Stoppers is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information that leads to the arrest and indictment of the person or people responsible for the homicide of Ms. Hempel. Anonymous calls may be placed to 908-654-TIPS or via the Internet at http://www.uctip.org/.

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