Authorities in South Jersey said they are investigating the death of a woman whose body was discovered Monday inside of a Burlington County home.
Prosecutors announced Wednesday that the death of 54-year-old Sheila Maguire has been ruled a homicide.
Maguire's body was discovered on the 200 block of Birch Hollow Drive in Florence Township late Monday afternoon, officials said.
The cause of her death is being withheld, according to the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office.
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On Monday authorities said there's no reason for the public to fear for their safety based on the incident.
"My wife and I saw her I think on Thursday or Friday," neighbor Charles Schweder said. "She was walking the dog in the late afternoon, but then I can’t remember seeing her after."
Schweder said he didn't hear any commotion.
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"The only question is: where is Pete? What's his whereabouts? What is going on with that?" Schweder questioned. He said the woman's boyfriend's car hasn't been there all weekend.
Family and friends became concerned when they didn't hear from Maguire over the weekend. They called police insisting on a welfare check.
"At that point they were knocking on the door, trying to see if anyone was in there. And then yesterday is when they went into the house and they found her," neighbor Schweder recalled.
The neighbors said police knocked on several doors asking questions Sunday night.
On Tuesday, NBC10 was at the home when police, accompanied by a regulated medical waste employee in hazmat gear, went inside. They left empty-handed.
Prosecutors have not yet said if the woman was stabbed, shot, or suffered another form of trauma - or who might be responsible.
Investigators said an autopsy should be completed by Tuesday night.
No arrests have been made.
