New Jersey mansion fire leaves multiple dead; arson being investigated

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Report: Multiple fatalities found at New Jersey mansion

Responding to a structure fire, authorities discovered multiple fatalities at a mansion in Colts Neck, New Jersey.

Four people, including two children, were confirmed dead on Tuesday after a fire broke out at a mansion in Monmouth County, New Jersey, officials said.

The fire at a home in Colts Neck, a city roughly 50 miles south of New York City, is being investigated as a possible arson, County Prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni said at a news conference.

Authorities were still working to put out the "fluid" blaze around 4:30 p.m. ET., after first responding to the fire around 1:00 p.m.

Gramiccioni said he's heard reports that five people have possibly died in the fire, but clarified investigators "know of four, and four alone." One of the bodies found on Tuesday was discovered outside of the home, while the other three were recovered from inside. He would not confirm if the bodies found were of members of the same family.

"Unfortunately, they were burned severely as a result of the fire they were exposed to, so that's making things somewhat challenging with the medical examination that needs to ensue," Gramiccioni told reporters.

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Law enforcement sources told WNBC-TV that a man was discovered shot outside the home, but the prosecutor said he could not yet comment on a possible gunshot wound to the body, or whether a gun was found nearby.

Colts Neck is a well-to-do community that's home to horse farms. Typical homes in the town of 10,000 are valued at about $750,000.

Public records show the home is owned by Keith Caneiro, 50, and Jennifer Caneiro, 45. The 5,700-square-foot home has four bedrooms and five bathrooms, according to Zillow. The owners purchased the property in 1998, and the home was built in 2003, public records show.

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Another fire, at a home in Ocean Township earlier Tuesday, is also being investigated as an arson. Gramiccioni said any connection that fire might have to the one in Colts Neck "remains to be seen."

The Ocean Township home, roughly 10 miles from Colts Neck, is owned by Paul and Susan Caneiro, and public records show the men are related, sharing at least one address in New York several decades ago.

Keith Caneiro, according to his LinkedIn profile, is described as the CEO and chief technology officer for a company in the New York City area called Square One. Paul Caneiro is identified online as the vice president of Square One.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.