Pennsylvania Man Charged with Willingboro Double Homicide
Monday, November 04, 2024
Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw and Willingboro Township Acting Public Safety Director Captain Ian Bucs announced that a 37-year-old Pennsylvania man has been charged with fatally shooting two women after breaking into their home early morning, October 30, in the Hawthorne Park section of Willingboro Township.
Junior Edwards, of Lansdowne, was charged yesterday with two counts of Murder (First Degree), Home Invasion Burglary Armed with a Firearm (First Degree), Unlawful Possession of a Weapon (Second Degree), Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful Purpose (Second Degree) and Endangering the Welfare of a Child (Second Degree).
The warrants were presented to Edwards yesterday in Philadelphia, where he had been taken into custody on charges unrelated to the homicides.
The investigation began just after 4 a.m. on October 30 after officers from the Willingboro Township Police Department were called to the first block of Harrington Circle for a report of a burglary in progress. After entering the residence, officers discovered the bodies of Catherine Nunez, 33, and her mother, Marisol Nunez, 54, in an upstairs bedroom. They were pronounced dead at the scene.
The investigation revealed that entry was made through a first-floor window that had been smashed open by Edwards. A handgun believed to be used in the homicides was discovered outside of the residence.
The investigation further revealed that Edwards and Catherine Nunez shared an 8-year-old son. The child was in the home during the shootings but was not injured.
Autopsies performed by Burlington County Medical Examiner Dr. Ian Hood determined the cause of death for both victims to be multiple gunshot wounds.
The investigation is being conducted by the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office and the Willingboro Township Police Department, with assistance from the FBI Trenton – Greater Safe Streets Task Force, the Lansdowne, Pa., Police Department, and the Philadelphia Police Department Violent Crimes Task Force. The lead investigators are BCPO Detectives Jennifer Marchese and Steven Trunfio, and Willingboro Detective Elijah Hart.