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After Man, Family Die in Mansion Fire, Brother Arrested

Paul Caneiro's arrest tied to a fire at his own home that happened hours prior
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 21, 2018 8:33 AM CST
Updated Nov 21, 2018 8:41 AM CST
7 Hours Before One Man's Fire, a Clue at His Brother's?
Firefighters battle a fatal fire on Tuesday in Colts Neck, NJ.   (WABC via AP)

A convoluted story out of New Jersey, where police have charged Paul Caneiro with aggravated arson in connection with a fire at his own home—one that the Asbury Park Press reports occurred seven hours before a fatal fire at his brother's mansion. Around 5am Tuesday, firefighters responded to Paul Caneiro's Ocean Township home and put out flames on the roof. Around 12:30pm, fire broke out at brother Keith Caneiro's home 12 miles away in Colts Neck, where police say a quadruple homicide occurred: Keith Caneiro, 50—found on the front lawn with a gunshot wound that didn't appear to be self-inflicted, per NJ.com—died along with his wife, 45-year-old Jennifer Caneiro, and their son and daughter, who were found inside, a law enforcement source tells the Asbury Park Press. The New York Times describes both children as under the age of 10.

The brothers appear to have been close. Born in Brooklyn, they shared a Staten Island address for more than a decade before moving to New Jersey with their wives, per NJ.com. They would take up separate abodes: Paul in a single-family home on Tilton Drive in suburban Ocean Township, Keith in a $1.5 million mansion in upscale Colts Neck, home to celebrities like Bruce Springsteen. But Paul would still work for Keith— owner of EcoStar Pest Management and apparent web development company Square One—who also served as his best man. "They're wonderful people," says a neighbor of Paul, who saw family members Tuesday outside the house believed to have suffered damage to its back and attic, per the Times. "It's pretty shocking stuff." An earlier version of this story erroneously reported Paul Caneiro as being charged in the Colts Neck fire. (More on the case here.)

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