Body Discovered Inside Celebration Home

Woman Checking On Neighbor Found Body, Deputies Say

POSTED: Monday, November 29, 2010
UPDATED: 8:11 am EST November 30, 2010


A body is found inside an apartment in Celebration.

CELEBRATION, Fla. -- A woman checking on a neighbor Monday morning discovered a body inside a Celebration apartment home, Osecola County sheriff's deputies said.

VIDEO: Body Found In Home http://www.clickorlando.com/video/25954929/index.html

The body was found around 9:40 a.m. at an apartment in the 500 block of Water Street.

Detectives said they are investigating the death as a suspicious incident. They said this is the first-ever suspicious death investigation in the Celebration community.

Dawn Peraino said she would see the man who lived at the apartment every day while she worked at her office on Water Street in Celebration.

"I would see him sitting outback, reading a book, walking his dog or letting his white Chihuahua walk around. I said hello to him everyday," Peraino said.

Now neighbors are upset to learn a body was discovered at his apartment Monday morning. Peraino said a friend was supposed to be keeping his dog for the holiday and couldn't reach him over the weekend. But investigators with the Osceola County Sheriff's Office have not confirmed many details.

"An individual called and said she was checking on a neighbor and when she went into the apartment, she found an individual deceased. At this time, we're investigating this as a suspicious death," said Twis Lizasuain, Osceola County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman.

While everyone waits to get more information, Peraino said she and other neighbors are hoping there's not a killer lurking in their quiet community.

"Everyone knows everyone. It's just a small town feel and we're very upset," Peraino said.

Celebration is a small, family-oriented community that was planned and developed by Disney in 1994. Investigators said although the death is being investigated as suspicious, there's no cause for neighbors in Celebration to be alarmed.

"In this neighborhood it's a rare occurrence for the Celebration community, and we are working this as an isolated incident. We don't believe there's another individual out there that would be targeting other individuals in Celebration," Lizasuain said.

Anyone with information about the incident is urged to call the Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS or the Osceola County Sheriff's Office.

Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.

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