A new documentary which landed on Netflix this week tells the harrowing story of a mother’s battle against her neighbour.
Soaring all the way to number one on the charts in Ireland, The Perfect Neighbour has gripped viewers with many branding it the ‘documentary of the year.’
On June 2, 2023, the dispute between the neighbours culminated in the death of mother-of-four Ajike Owens, who was shot by Susan Lorincz.
One woman. Dozens of 911 calls. And a neighborhood caught in a nightmare.
Winner of the Sundance Film Festival’s Directing Award, The Perfect Neighbor premieres October 17. pic.twitter.com/voVo39E4f8
— Netflix (@netflix) September 23, 2025
The majority of the documentary is told through police body camera footage, which captures the event leading up to the death of Owens.
Lorincz moved into the neighbourhood and was aggrieved with the children playing outside — ringing 911 numerous times to complain about their supposed antics.
Nikon Kwantu, who produced the documentary, noted that Susan was an ‘outlier’ who always resorted to calling the police as opposed to dealing with the disturbance amicably.
In June, 2023, the children particularly irritated Owens, who subsequently took an electronic tablet which was left in the yard by one of the children.
It has been claimed that she threw the device to the ground and also threw a pair of roller skates at the child in question.
Lorincz went on to ring the police, claiming she was ‘fearing for my life.’
They weren’t kidding back at Sundance with all of the praise for this documentary. The Perfect Neighbor is wild, infuriating, heartbreaking and more. Watch it. It’s a tough one, but important. pic.twitter.com/SsNIohLKnd
— 𝕁𝕖𝕤𝕤𝕗𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒 𝕓𝕪 𝕋𝕠𝕥𝕠 (@Jessfrica) October 18, 2025
As the children told their mum what had happened, Owens went to her neighbour to discuss the issue and was subsequently shot by 380-caliber handgun.
In November 2024, Susan Lorincz was found guilty of manslaughter with a firearm and was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
What really bothered me about the perfect neighbour is that you don’t see kids playing in neighbourhoods like that anymore and she ruined it. She destroyed that entire neighbourhood and all those kids outdoor experiences
— 𝚓 (@notjunieb) October 18, 2025
She is currently serving her sentence at Homestead Correctional Institution in South Florida, with the Florida Department of Corrections’ website listing her release date as April 8, 2048.
Viewers have been having their say after watching the Netflix documentary, with many sharing glowing recommendations for the difficult watch on social media.
#ThePerfectNeighbor broke my heart. 4 children have to grow up without their mother because an angry, old and racist white woman couldn’t handle kids playing.
— Funi (@ms_funi) October 17, 2025
One wrote: ‘They weren’t kidding back at Sundance with all the praise for this documentary. The Perfect Neigbour is wild, infuriating, heartbreaking and more.
‘Watch it. It’s a tough one, but important.’
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Another added: ‘What really bothered me about the perfect neighbour is that you don’t see kids playing in neighbourhoods like that anymore and she ruined it.
‘She destroyed that entire neighbourhood and all those kids outdoor experiences.’
A third shared: ‘#ThePerfectNeighbour broke my heart, 4 children have to grow up without their mother because an angry, old and racist white woman couldn’t handle kids playing.’
