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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
National
Mabel Banfield-Nwachi

Crossbow killings: Kyle Clifford arrested on suspicion of murdering three women

Kyle Clifford
Kyle Clifford was arrested on suspicion of three counts of murder on Thursday evening. Photograph: Hertfordshire police/AP

A man suspected over the crossbow killings of a woman and her two daughters has been arrested.

Kyle Clifford, 26, was arrested on suspicion of three counts of murder on Thursday evening. He remains in a serious condition in hospital after being found with serious injuries in a north London cemetery.

Carol Hunt, 61, the wife of the BBC 5 Live commentator John Hunt, and their daughters Hannah, 28, and Louise, 25, were found fatally injured at a house on Ashlyn Close in Bushey, Hertfordshire, just after 7pm on Tuesday.

Det Supt Rob Hall, of the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire major crime unit, said: “Our thoughts remain with the victims’ family at this tragic time. The investigation is moving at pace and as a result we have now arrested a man. Enquiries are continuing at this time.”

Clifford was found by police with injuries in woodland near Lavender Hill cemetery in Enfield, north London, on Wednesday afternoon after appeals. The Guardian understands that he had emergency surgery for a chest wound and is still being treated in a London hospital under police guard.

Flowers and tributes were left at the scene in Ashlyn Close, with notes attached to some bouquets with messages such as “rest in peace angels”.

On Thursday a former colleague of Hannah Hunt who preferred not to be named said she was still in disbelief that this could happen to “the loveliest family ever”.

“I worked with Hannah at a spa just a few years ago [and when] I saw the name of the road on the news, I texted her to say ‘I hope you and your family are OK’ because you just don’t think something like this would happen. They were just lovely, their whole family was lovely,” the ex-colleague said.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct said it had received a mandatory referral from the Metropolitan police after Clifford was found by officers with serious injuries in Enfield, but it was satisfied no investigation was needed.

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