Catherine and Marisol “Morena” Nunez were Willingboro homicide victims

An 8-year-old child Willingboro The boy who witnessed the home invasion murders of his mother and grandmother hid under a blanket until police arrived, a court filing said.

Officers responding to a reported burglary in progress found the bodies of Catherine Nunez, 33, and Marisol “Morena” Nunez, 54, on the floor of the young woman’s bedroom shortly after 4 am, October 30. A statement of probable cause. for the charges against the accused killer, a 37-year-old Pennsylvania man, Junior “Jamie” Edwards, said the boy hid in his mother’s bed.

The five-page statement further details the women’s futile efforts to save themselves from Edwards, the boy’s father and Catherine Nunez’s ex-boyfriend.

It also describes several steps investigators took to build a case against Edwards and bring him into custody. Edwards, meanwhile, has denied having anything to do with the women’s deaths.

Horror on Harrington Circle

According to the affidavit, the shooting occurred shortly after the child was awakened by a noise downstairs in the Harrington Circle home.

The boy told investigators his mother brought him into her bedroom, where his grandmother joined them.

The boy said he believed his mother called the police because she “thought she heard someone tell her to stay on the phone.”

The women tried to lock the bedroom door against an intruder who had broken in through a downstairs window. But the boy told detectives a “bad boy” entered the room holding a gun and opened fire.

Each woman was shot repeatedly in the head, a criminal complaint said.

The child described the gunman’s outfit, including a green mask, and said he saw “yellow color coming from the firearm.” He also imitated the sound of fire as “pew pew pew pew,” according to the account.

The Division of Child Protection and Permanency took custody of the boy, and a caseworker consented to his questioning at the Burlington County Child Advocacy Center.

Police found a gun, then killed women

Police arrived to find a gun in a flower bed under a broken first-floor window, the release said.

They entered through the window, cleared the first floor, then made the grim discovery in the upstairs bedroom. Seven spent casings were found on the floor.

The deadly attack occurred at a time of heightened tension between Catherine Nunez and Edwards, according to the statement.

It noted that she filed a report with Philadelphia police after Edwards allegedly tried to run her off the road following a relinquishment of custody in early October. Edwards had characterized the incident as a misunderstanding.

Catherine Nunez also obtained a temporary restraining order against Edwards, but requested it be dismissed eight days before her death. That same day, she filed for child support and full custody of her son, who had been spending weekends with his father.

Edwards was unhappy with a deepening relationship between his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend, the statement added.

Investigators saw the first alleged connection to Edwards in surveillance video of an SUV similar to the one Edwards was driving driving with its lights off near Harrington Circle at 4:11 a.m. on Oct. 30.

The vehicle’s license plate appeared to be covered with black tape, according to the affidavit. A similar vehicle was seen hours later two towns over from the suspect’s home in Lansdowne, Delaware County.

The affidavit acknowledged that his vehicle was not reported using any of the Delaware River bridges before or after the murders.

But he said automatic number plate readers on bridges “would not report an obstructed plate”.

Edwards was arrested in Lansdowne at approximately 4:20 p.m. Oct. 30 and is being held on charges stemming from the hit-and-run incident that Catherine Nunez said happened.

A search of his apartment turned up black duct tape and electrical tape, as well as two Pennsylvania license plates that were reported stolen, the release said.

Edwards told investigators he was “extremely concerned” for his son, saying the boy had not responded to calls to his iPad earlier that morning.

A search of the boy’s iPad turned up no missed calls, and Edwards refused to unlock his phone for detectives, the release said.

He also noted the man’s reaction when told the women were killed in front of his son.

While Edwards “became visibly upset, it should be noted that I did not observe his eyes water or his voice crack,” said Det. Jennifer Marchese of the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office.

The affidavit also said Edwards “was adamant he was not in Willingboro” at the time of the murders and had no involvement in them.

Edwards is charged with two counts of murder, as well as home invasion with a weapon, endangering the welfare of a child and weapons offenses.

Allegations are just allegations. He was not convicted in the case.

Jim Walsh is a senior reporter at the Courier-Post, Burlington County Times and The Daily Journal. Email: [email protected].