Colts Neck Family Was Murdered Before House Was Set Ablaze

Keith and Jennifer Caneiro

The four bodies discovered at 15 Willow Brook Road in Colts Neck yesterday were murdered prior to the fire being set on the property, according to officials speaking on the condition of anonymity.

Keith and Jennifer Canerio both died as the result of gunshot wounds, the sources said. Their young children, a son and a daughter, were both brutally stabbed to death.

Keith’s body was found outside his burning home. Jennifer and the children were found inside the home, severely burned after death.

The Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office has charged Paul Caneiro, Keith’s brother and business partner, with the Aggravated Arson of his own home at 27 Tilton Drive in Ocean Township. The Ocean Township home had a fire early on Tuesday morning. The Colts Neck fire was reported prior to 1 pm on Tuesday and was not fully extinguished until after midnight.

Paul Caneiro is in the custody of the Monmouth County Correctional Institution.

DVR recordings from the Colts Neck home security have been recovered and are being reviewed by investigators. The security system at the Ocean Township home was turned off prior to the fire.

Paul Caneiro

Investigators from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) arrived at the Colts Neck scene last night and have joined the investigation with the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office.

In what might be a morbid coincidence, Paul’s daughter, Katelyn Caneiro, tweeted a screen shot of the text that apparently joked about murder and burning down a house in September of 2016. It is not known who sent the text. Katelyn is an employee of one of the Caneiro businesses, Jay Martin Consulting of Asbury Park, according to her LinkedIn profile.