Windsor woman, 20, one of two shot dead in Fort Erie

A young Windsor woman was one of two people shot dead earlier this week at a Fort Erie rental house.

Niagara Regional Police said Thursday that Juliana Pannunzio, 20, of Windsor, was found dead early Tuesday at the shortterm rental house on the Niagara Parkway.

The second woman was Christina Crooks, 18, of Toronto.

Investigators said they are scouring the area around the crime scene — on land and in the water — in the hopes of finding anything that could provide insight into exactly what happened and who is responsible.

There are many potential suspects.

“Evidence at the scene suggests that there were multiple people at the house,” Niagara Regional Police said.

“Detectives are attempting to determine the identity of everyone who was present or in the house before and when the incident occurred.”

Police received a 911 call at 4:17 a.m. Tuesday about a disturbance involving a firearm at a residence on the Niagara Parkway. Police said responding officers found two dead women who had “obvious trauma to their bodies.” The women were alone in the house when officers arrived. The homicide and forensics units were called in to investigate.

Police shut down the Niagara River Parkway between Black Creek Road and Switch Road in the early stages of the probe.

Investigators said they have since learned that on Monday, a group of people, including some from outside the region, went to the rental house. The group included the two victims.

At some point in the night, police said, someone fired a gun. Everyone had fled from the house before officers arrived. Uniformed officers and the forensics services unit remained at the scene Thursday.

Police said officers would be searching the surrounding area on foot for evidence. The Niagara Regional Police Service's underwater search and recovery unit also started looking for potential evidence in the nearby Niagara River on Wednesday.

Police are asking people to use alternative routes as the police presence continues in the days to come. Despite being in the preliminary stages of the investigation, detectives said they have no reason to believe there is an imminent threat to public safety.

Homicide detectives are asking anyone who lives in the area or has a business there to check security cameras, doorbell cameras or dashboard cameras for anything that could help the investigation.

Niagara Regional Police detectives can be reached at (905) 6884111 ext. 1009134.