WILLINGBORO, N.J. — A Pennsylvania man faces multiple charges after allegedly breaking into the home of his son’s mother and fatally shooting her and her own mother early Wednesday morning in Willingboro Township, according to Burlington County prosecutors.
Junior Edwards, 37, of Lansdowne, Pennsylvania, was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, as well as burglary, weapon possession offenses, and endangering the welfare of a child. Prosecutors allege that Edwards forced entry into the home on the first block of Harrington Circle, where Catherine Nunez, 33, and her mother, Marisol Nunez, 54, were later found dead in an upstairs bedroom.
Willingboro Township police responded to the scene around 4 a.m. following reports of a burglary in progress, according to the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office and Willingboro Township Public Safety officials. Upon entering the residence, officers discovered the bodies of both women, who had been shot multiple times. The victims were pronounced dead at the scene.
Investigators determined that Edwards entered the home by smashing a first-floor window.
A handgun believed to have been used in the killings was reportedly found outside the residence. Authorities said that Edwards and Catherine Nunez shared an 8-year-old son, who was inside the home at the time of the shootings but was not harmed.
Autopsies performed by Burlington County Medical Examiner Dr. Ian Hood confirmed that both women died from multiple gunshot wounds. Edwards was taken into custody in Philadelphia on unrelated charges before Burlington County officials issued the warrants for his arrest in connection with the homicides.
Edwards remains in custody in Pennsylvania as he awaits extradition to New Jersey, where he will face the charges.