PORT COLBORNE, Ontario — Niagara awoke to heartbreak once again another man dead, another family shattered, and another community left asking how this keeps happening.

On Wednesday, a heavy police presence descended on Port Colborne following reports of a weapons incident that left residents fearful and schools in lockdown. Hours later, investigators confirmed the tragedy that many had feared: 42-year-old Mark Pero was found dead in what police have now classified as a homicide.

According to the Niagara Regional Police Service (NRPS), 27-year-old Brady Neff, also of Port Colborne, has been charged with second-degree murder. Police say the incident was targeted and that the victim and suspect were known to one another.

In addition to the homicide charge, Neff faces several other offenses, including domestic assault, uttering threats, choking, pointing a firearm, and possession of a firearm. Investigators have since recovered the weapon believed to have been used in the attack.

The violent episode put Port Colborne on edge for much of the day. Schools were placed under hold-and-secure orders, families were told to stay inside, and officers flooded residential streets searching for the suspect. It was only after Neff’s arrest that residents began to breathe a collective sigh of relief — though the emotional toll remains heavy.

But amid the sorrow, frustration is growing. Many in the Niagara Region are asking how such violence continues to unfold, and whether more could have been done to prevent it. Tragedies like this one have become distressingly common, each one reigniting calls for accountability and reform.

Community members say they’re tired of seeing lives lost to preventable acts of violence — and they want change. They’re demanding stronger safeguards, better protection for victims, and a justice system that prioritizes community safety.

“This shouldn’t be normal,” one local resident said. “Every time something like this happens, we hear promises — but families are still being torn apart.”

The Niagara Regional Police Service continues to investigate the circumstances surrounding Pero’s death, collecting evidence, reviewing surveillance footage, and interviewing witnesses.

As Port Colborne mourns, residents are uniting in grief and determination remembering Mark Pero as a friend, neighbor, and part of a community now left searching for peace and accountability.

Another life has been lost. Another tragedy has shaken Niagara. And once again, people are asking the same painful question:

When will it finally stop?