By: Richard L. Smith
A Monmouth County judge on Tuesday sentenced an Ocean Township man to four consecutive life prison terms plus an additional 16 years without the possibility of parole for the 2018 murders of his brother, sister-in-law, nephew, and niece in a case that stunned residents across Monmouth County.
According to Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago, Paul J. Caneiro, 59, was sentenced before Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Marc C. Lemieux after being convicted earlier this year on multiple charges connected to the killings.
A Monmouth County jury found Caneiro guilty on February 13, 2026, of four counts of first-degree murder, two counts of felony murder, aggravated arson, weapons offenses, theft-related charges, and hindering apprehension in connection with the deaths of his brother, Keith Caneiro, 50, Keith’s wife Jennifer Caneiro, 45, and their two children, Jesse, 11, and Sophia, 8.
The family was found dead on November 20, 2018, just days before Thanksgiving, inside their Colts Neck home after authorities responded to a fire at the residence.
Investigators later determined the killings were intentional and that the fire had been set in an effort to conceal the crime.
In announcing the sentence, Prosecutor Santiago described the murders as calculated and horrifying, stating that Paul Caneiro first cut power to the family’s home before luring his brother outside and killing him.
Prosecutors said he then targeted the remaining family members one by one inside the darkened home.
“The list of crimes for which Paul Caneiro was convicted collectively does little to adequately describe the hideous nature of his actions on that night,” Santiago said in a statement released Tuesday.
The prosecutor added that while the sentencing brings a measure of justice, it cannot reverse the devastating loss suffered by surviving relatives and the wider community still impacted by the tragedy.
The sentence ensures Caneiro will spend the remainder of his life in prison.