Wake County Sheriff Donnie Harrison said robbery could be the motive behind the murder of an elderly woman.

The body of Paula McCance, 83, was found in her home Monday evening on Rock Service Station Road, in the southeastern part of the county.

Police said McCance's sister, who was about to move into the home, found McCance's body in her bed.

Neighbors described her as a nice, quiet person who kept to herself.

"This is a tragedy," Harrison said. "I just can't see why anybody would do something to an 83-year-old person that had to use a walker to get around."

Investigators spent part of Monday in the home looking for any evidence.

"There's some things that we think have been moved around. Hopefully we'll get some fingerprints and come up with a good clue," he said.

Neighbors said McCance had lived alone for some time.

They said her daughter, who lives just down the road, would often check in on her mother. Police said McCance had health issues.

A friend said McCance's daughter was too upset to talk about what happened.

Police said her daughter was the last person to see McCance alive Sunday evening.

"I was shocked," said neighbor Tim Tharp. "My daughter, she wouldn't even sleep by herself last night."

Neighbor Fred Phillippe said the neighborhood had seen some minor crimes such as burglary in recent years, but nothing close to a homicide.

"You don't know what's going to happen anymore," he said.

The Sheriff's Office said no information on a cause of death was available to release, but a medical examiner's report could be available Wednesday.