Dad broke into home before 'shooting mum and grandmother' with son in house in horror slaughter

A man was arrested on suspicion of fatally shooting his son's mother and grandmother with the young lad in the house at the time of the horrific incident.

The 37 year old, named Junior Edwards from Pennsylvania, faces a litany of charges including two counts of first-degree murder after prosecutors in Burlington County, New Jersey, brought the case against him.

It’s alleged that Edwards shot both Catherine Nunez, aged 33, and her 54 year old mother Marisol, following a break-in at their home in Willingboro Township, New Jersey early on Wednesday, October 30.

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Just after 4am, local police rushed to the scene over reports of an ongoing burglary and stumbled upon the tragedy – finding Catherine and Marisol Nunez lifeless in a bedroom upstairs, where they were declared deceased at the crime scene.

The brutal double slaying left the community reeling, with neighbour and chum Charlee Harris telling Philadelphia Fox affiliate WTXF : "Barely sleeping. We can't sleep cause we just don't know," this being before any arrest took place.

Neighbour Glenda Sprauve was left in utter disbelief, saying: "I'm still flabbergasted. I still cannot sleep. I cannot sleep."

While already in custody on unrelated charges, Edwards was arrested for the murders after an investigation pointed to him smashing through a first-floor window to enter the home. Police found a handgun believed to be the murder weapon outside the property, reports the Mirror US.

It was also revealed that Edwards and victim Catherine Nunez had an 8 year old son together, who was present during the incident but remained unharmed. The autopsies confirmed that both victims died from multiple gunshot wounds.