New Jersey officials on Wednesday refused to say whether there was a connection between the four people found slaughtered at a smoldering New Jersey mansion and the victim’s brother — who was arrested for trying to burn down his own house with his family inside.
Paul Caneiro was collared Wednesday for trying to burn down his Ocean Township home around 5 a.m. Tuesday — just hours before his brother, Keith, was found dead with “multiple gunshot wounds” outside his incinerated Colts Neck home with his wife and kids’ charred remains inside, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni said during a press conference.
Gramiccioni said investigators still haven’t arrived at a motive for the grisly pre-Thanksgiving slaughter and refused to say whether Paul is a suspect in the slaying.
“It’s just a question I can’t answer at this time,” Gramiccioni said. “I can only focus on Paul Caneiro as a suspect in the Ocean Township arson.”
On Tuesday, Gramiccioni claimed there was “no reason that anyone in the community is in any danger at this time.”
Asked Wednesday whether the public should be concerned about a quadruple murderer stalking the wealthy New Jersey suburb, the prosecutor claimed there was no killer on the loose.
“No. If that was the case, then you’d hear it from us up here,” he said at the press conference. “We would be sharing our concerns with the public, but I have no reason to believe that’s the case. We believe that in some form or fashion, this family was targeted.”
Paul was charged with aggravated arson for setting fire to his home with his wife and two daughters inside, according to a criminal complaint.
Gramiccioni identified the child victims as Sophia Caneiro, 8, and brother Jesse, 11 — the children of Keith and wife Jennifer, who was also found dead in the house.
The mother and children were stabbed, according to reports, but Gramiccioni wouldn’t confirm the detail.
He also waved off questions about why the FBI was involved in the investigation.
“Don’t read anything unnecessary into that,” Gramiccioni said.
