Domenic Ianiero, 59, and his wife Nancy, 55, were found with their throats slashed in their hotel room at a luxury resort near Playa del Carmen on Feb. 20.

The couple, from Woodbridge, Ont., were in Mexico along with several family members for their daughter's wedding.

Mexican authorities have been criticized for their handling of the investigation including changing statements made to the media.

Following is a timeline detailing the bizarre twist of events that have unravelled since the grisly discovery and the start of the investigation into the Ianiero's deaths.

April 4, 2006 

The Ianieros' lawyer Eddie Greenspan tells a Toronto newspaper that the Ianiero family have hired a private detective to investigate the deaths.

April 2, 2006 

An anonymous letter sent to a Mexican newspaper suggests police should look for two Canadians who flew to Cancun the same week Dominic and Nancy Ianiero were killed.

The typed letter, which was stamped on March 3 at a post office near Hamilton, Ont., reads: "Will you please ask the police to check out the possibility of Canadians flying from Cuba to Cancun on the week that the murders took place."

It was sent to the Mexican newspaper Novedades Quintana Roo.

April 1, 2006 

Mexico's attorney general announces he has disciplined a crime scene investigator who admitted to leaking graphic photos of the slain couple to a tabloid newspaper.

The photos show the Ianieros lying in a large pool of blood in their hotel room.

Attorney General Bello Melchor Rodriguez said Jorge Fernando Lopez, an investigator in the case, had admitted to releasing the photos. No decision had been made on whether Lopez would face criminal charges.

March 30, 2006 

Thunder Bay women Cheryl Everall and Kimberley Kim, who were considered possible suspects in the slayings, appeal to Prime Minister Stephen Harper to speak to Mexican President Vicente Fox during a summit in Cancun.

March 13, 2006 

The RCMP sends another team of investigators to Mexico to concentrate on the forensic aspect of the case.

March 9, 2006

The Toronto Sun reports that Mexican investigators lifted traces of hair from Nancy Ianiero's hand before her body was returned to Canada.

The hair sample is being analyzed by a laboratory in Mexico City and is believed to belong to the killer, a Mexican journalist is reported as saying.

Meanwhile, Bello Melchor Rodriguez, attorney general for the state of Quintana Roo, says two Thunder Bay women were never suspects in the killings, only potential witnesses.

Rodriguez also denies reports that four hotel employees are now the prime suspects in the case.

March 8

Unconfirmed media reports from Mexico suggest Mexican authorities are seeking four hotel employees in their investigation --contradicting earlier reports that hotel workers had been ruled out as suspects.

Two veteran RCMP investigators are reported to have arrived in Mexico to help with the investigation.

March 6

More than 700 mourners attend a private funeral service in Woodbridge, Ont., for the Ianieros.

The couple's niece, Rosanne Ianiero, lashes out at Mexican officials who have suggested the murders are linked to organized crime.

"At this time, you should not have to defend your name," she told a packed funeral service.

March 5

Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay tells CTV's Question Period he is satisfied with the co-operation of the Mexican government in the investigation.

March 4

Friends and family gather at a funeral home in Woodbridge, Ont., for the visitation of the slain couple.

Also present are members of the York Regional Police. Police investigators note the cars and people entering the funeral home.

According to a report in The Globe and Mail, investigators in Mexico no longer suspect Thunder Bay women Cheryl Everall and Kimberley Kim played a role in the killings.

The Globe quotes sources saying Mexican police are now inclined to believe the Ianieros knew their attackers.

Meeting with Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay, Mexico's foreign secretary promises a "clear and thorough" investigation of the murders.

Luis Ernesto Derbez Bautista says the Mexican government will allow Canadian police to participate in the investigation.

Media reports quote Bello Melchor Rodriguez, attorney general for the state of Quintana Roo, as saying RCMP officials had indicated one of the victims may have had links to "illicit activities."

The RCMP refuses to confirm this.

March 2

Bello Melchor Rodriguez, attorney general for the state of Quintana Roo, insists the principal evidence linking two Canadian women to the killings is a trail of blood.

However, a senior Canadian official close to the investigation tells CTV News the blood was not spread by the women, but by a hotel maid.

A Canadian tourist who was at the same hotel tells CTV News he walked through blood in the hotel hallway around 3 a.m. on the night of the killings and saw heel prints going into a garden.

Despite allegations that the investigation has been botched, the RCMP stands by the Mexican authorities.

March 1

The grieving son of Dominic and Nancy Ianiero urges Canadian authorities to work closely with Mexican authorities to find answers.

In a statement to reporters, Anthony Ianiero says: "Justice must be done, and the road to justice lies in answering the many questions that have been raised."

Prime Minister Stephen Harper reveals the RCMP has received no extradition requests from Mexico for suspects.

Opposition critics blast Harper, saying he has done little to ensure the investigation is being properly handled.

Feb. 28

Two Thunder Bay women who fear Mexican authorities unjustly consider them suspects proclaim their innocence at a press conference. Cheryl Everall and Kimberley Kim describe the accusations as "ridiculous."

Thunder Bay police confirm they will be speaking with some 50 passengers who travelled on the same flight that Everall and Kim took back to Canada from Mexico.

Feb. 27

The bodies of Domenic and Nancy Ianiero are returned to Canada. Toronto coroner, Dr. David Evans, says crucial evidence may have been lost during the autopsy and embalming in Mexico.

Toronto radio talk show host Bill Carroll urges Canadian spring break travellers to avoid going to Mexico.

Feb. 26

Public Security Minister Stockwell Day tells CTV's Question Period that the RCMP has been working with Mexican authorities in the investigation.

Day says Mexico is blaming Canadians for the killings in an attempt to protect tourism in the area.

Meanwhile, speculation that the killings were related to organized crime prompt the Ianiero family to release a statement to express their frustration.

"All the stories out there are all lies," the statement reads.

For the second time, Mexican authorities cancel a news conference on the case. They were expected to release names and pictures of the suspects.

Feb. 25

CTV News learns that extradition warrants will be sought for three Canadian women in connection with the killings.

Canadian authorities confirm the RCMP has received a request from the Mexican authorities to get involved in the investigation -- almost a week after the killings took place.

Meanwhile, Bello Melchor Rodriguez, attorney general for the state of Quintana Roo, now says the killings do not look like the work of organized crime.

Feb. 24

Mexican police say they have photos and names of two Canadian suspects, and media reports suggest they are searching for a third.

Two Thunder Bay women, who fear they may wrongly be considered suspects in the killings, hire a lawyer and report to local police in Canada.

The women were staying in the same hotel as the slain couple and their names are similar to the suspects' names released by Mexican authorities.

RCMP say there is no evidence linking them to the crime.

Felipe Duran, a spokesman for the state attorney general, says media attention is hampering the murder investigation.

Feb. 23

Bello Melchor Rodriguez, attorney general for the state of Quintana Roo, tells reporters he believes the suspects were carrying out a professional, pre-meditated hit.

While they are no longer certain that the suspects are women, Mexican authorities say they are confident they are Canadians who have left Mexico.

Feb. 22

A Mexican State Attorney spokesman tells reporters that two Canadian women who have already left the country are the main suspects in the brutal killings.

Feb. 21

Reports of the killings appear on the front pages of Mexican newspapers. The reports say the Ianieros were still wearing their jewelry when their bodies were found and there was no sign of robbery.

Feb. 20

The bodies of Domenic and Nancy Ianiero are found with their throats slashed in their hotel room at the five-star Barcelo Maya Beach Resort near Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

The blood is mopped up from the corridor outside the couple's room before police arrive at the scene.