Long-Delayed NJ Quadruple Murder Trial Finally Begins: Suspect Killed Four Family Members and Torched Two Homes | Crime Alert 6AM 01.14.26
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Crime Alert, hourly update, breaking crime news now.
I'm Drew Nelson. A long-delayed quadruple murder trial is now underway in New Jersey, with prosecutors and defense attorneys laying out starkly different versions of how an entire family was wiped out inside their own home. Paul Canero is on trial in Monmouth County, accused of killing his younger brother, Keith Canero, Keith's wife, Jennifer, and their two children, Jesse and Sophia, during a violent rampage in November 2018.
What are the details of the New Jersey quadruple murder trial?
Prosecutors say Kinero then set the family's Colts Neck mansion on fire and torched his own home in Ocean Township the same day to make it look like the family had been targeted by someone else. In opening statements, Assistant Prosecutor Nicole Wallace described the killings as calculated and driven by money, greed, and desperation. She told jurors Kinero hunted his family members inside the darkened house after shooting his brother outside.
He stabbed his niece Sophia 17 times over her entire 45-pound body.
Prosecutors say Kinero was facing mounting financial problems and feared being cut off after Keith discovered tens of thousands of dollars missing from their co-owned businesses. They allege the murders were carried out to gain control of a life insurance policy worth millions. Kinero appeared emotional at times in court, wiping away tears as the jury heard the details. The defense forcefully rejected the prosecution's theory. Attorney Monica Mastalone told jurors Kinero is innocent and did not commit the murders or set either house on fire.
He certainly did not brutally murder the family members that you will hear he loved and cherished and adored so much.
Mastalone argued that investigators developed tunnel vision early in the case and failed to fully investigate other potential suspects, including another brother who also stood to benefit financially.
They did not investigate any other suspects, even obvious ones.
What evidence do prosecutors present against Paul Canero?
And they searched for evidence to support their theory.
Kinero has been jailed since his arrest in 2018. The trial was delayed for years by legal challenges and the COVID pandemic. Testimony began with an accountant who spoke with Keith Kinero the night before the murders and described him as deeply upset. The trial is expected to last for weeks, with jurors hearing extensive forensic, financial, and witness testimony, lasting into March. More crime and justice news after this. A North Texas reality TV husband and wife are now convicted felons after a federal jury found they ran a multimillion dollar pyramid scheme that prosecutors say preyed on trust inside the black community during the pandemic. Marlon and LaShonda Moore were found guilty in federal court in Sherman, Texas, of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and money laundering.
Prosecutors say the couple defrauded more than 10,000 people nationwide, pulling in more than $25 million through their program known as Blessings in No Time, or BINT. The Moores once appeared on the reality TV show Family or Fiancé, which prosecutors say helped them build credibility while marketing the scheme out of their Prosper, Texas home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Victims say the program was pitched as a community-based way to survive financial hardship. Participants were told their money was guaranteed and that refunds would be issued if they were not satisfied. Federal investigators say neither promise was true.
We were just played. We were played with our feelings. We were promised. The money, we didn't get it.
One of the victims, Rosetta Fleming, says she and her husband invested more than $6,000. She spoke to KXAS about the emotional toll.
They were African Americans as well, and they were taking advantage of us. They specifically stated no other race, no other group of people, no social media.
Fleming says participants did not see the program as a risk.
We didn't look at it as like it was a gamble. We looked at it like it was something out there that could help us. You know, pay the bills, feed our children.
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