Weapon found near bodies of West Kelowna man and woman

WEST KELOWNA – RCMP say a weapon was found near where the bodies of a man and woman were discovered in West Kelowna yesterday.

The bodies of Kimberley Ansell, 31, and Marcello Verna, 20, were found in the area of Shannon Way and Westville Way at around 7 a.m., March 2.

RCMP say the investigation is in its early stages and only refer to it as a sudden death.

Their identities were only made available through social media today.

Const. Jesse O'Donaghey says police are protecting the integrity of the investigation by releasing as few details as possible and have stopped short of calling it a homicide investigation.

“Investigators do believe this was an isolated incident, however we are not yet classifying these deaths,” O’Donaghey says. “Autopsies are pending, which are expected to be conducted sometime next week, to aid investigators in determining the exact cause of deaths for both individuals.”

Ansell was a mother of two and Verna was a recent graduate from Immaculata High School in Kelowna.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Adam Proskiw at aproskiw@infonews.ca or call 250-718-0428. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.

— This story was updated at 2:40 p.m., Thursday, March 3, 2016 to correct the photo.