LONDON (AP) — British police said they found Wednesday the man suspected of killing three women, the wife and daughters of a well-known BBC radio commentator, near London in a brutal crossbow attack.
In a statement, Hertfordshire Police said 26-year-old Kyle Clifford was found in the Enfield area of north London, near his home, and that he is receiving medical treatment for his injuries. Police did not say how those injuries happened but stressed that they had not fired any shots.
The BBC confirmed that the women killed were members of the family of its commentator John Hunt — his 61-year-old wife Carol Hunt and their daughters Hannah, 28, and Louise, 25.
Footage from Sky News showed the suspect being carried on a stretcher out of Lavender Hill Cemetery in Enfield, which is close to his home and around 52 kilometers (17 miles) to the east from the site of the killings. Armed police officers, forensic personnel and ambulance staff had massed around the cemetery through the day.
The public had been urged not to approach Clifford, who the BBC reported had been in the British Army for a brief period of service in 2022.
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“Following extensive inquiries, the suspect has been located and nobody else is being sought in connection with the investigation at this time,” said Detective Inspector Justine Jenkins from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit.
“This continues to be an incredibly difficult time for the victims’ family and we would ask that their privacy is respected as they come to terms with what has happened,” she added.
Jenkins said the investigation is moving “at pace” and that formal identification of the victims is yet to take place. She also said that the “premature” naming of the victims “caused great upset.”
Police had been scouring a park in north London, near the home of Clifford, after being alerted Tuesday about the killings in a house in Bushey, a residential area in northwestern London. Police and ambulance crews tried to save them, but they were pronounced dead at the scene.
John Hunt is the main racing commentator for BBC 5 Live, the corporation’s main news and sports radio channel. His voice is known to millions through his coverage of the world famous Grand National and The Derby.
A colleague of Hunt’s and BBC 5 Live’s lead presenter Mark Chapman struggled to hold back the tears as he expressed everyone’s shock and pain.
“We have a football match to bring you tonight ... and we will start our buildup to it shortly but this has been a heartbreaking day,” he said as he opened Wednesday’s coverage on 5 Live of England’s semifinal match against The Netherlands in soccer’s European Championship.
“John Hunt is our colleague and our friend, not just to the current 5 Live sport team but to all of those who’ve worked here with him over the past 20 years, and also to all of you who have enjoyed his superb commentaries,” Chapman said. “So on behalf of everyone connected to 5 Live Sport, our love and thoughts and support are with John and his family.”
The Daily Mail newspaper and others reported that Hunt found the bodies early Tuesday evening, after returning home from reporting at Lingfield Park racecourse south of London.
Police did not say how or whether Clifford was connected to the women, but British media had reported that he was an ex-boyfriend of one of the daughters.
Chief Superintendent Jon Simpson suggested the attack was not random and that the suspect knew the family.
Local council member Laurence Brass, who lives nearby, described the area as “a typical leafy British suburb” as he recounted his experience from the previous night.
“At about eight o’clock last night, I was watching the football on television, and suddenly a helicopter landed in the lawn outside my flat, which is at the top of this road, and then my phone started going, and I was told that there was a major incident here in Bushey and we should all keep away because there was somebody apparently on the run,” he told the BBC.
Britain’s new home secretary, Yvette Cooper, was kept “fully informed” about the “truly shocking” incident.
People in Britain do not need a license to own a crossbow, but it is illegal to carry one in public without a reasonable excuse.
A spokesperson for the Home Office said Cooper will “swiftly consider” the findings from a recently launched review into whether further controls on crossbows should be introduced.
FAQs
Kyle Clifford was sought in connection with the killing of three women, potentially involving a crossbow and other weapons, in Bushey, England. British police said they found Wednesday the man suspected of killing the wife and two daughters of a well-known BBC radio commentator near London in a brutal crossbow attack.
Who was the BBC commentator's family killed? ›
Sky Sports and BBC racing commentator John Hunt 'devastated' by murders of wife and two daughters. John Hunt and his daughter Amy issued a statement after the murders of Carol, 61, Louise, 25, and Hannah, 28.
Who was the journalist family killed in the UK? ›
Three women killed in a Hertfordshire home were the wife and two daughters of BBC racing commentator John Hunt, it has been confirmed. Carol Hunt, 61, Hannah Hunt, 28, and Louise Hunt, 25, were found seriously injured at a house in Ashlyn Close, Bushey, just before 19:00 BST on Tuesday, and all died at the scene.
Who was the BBC journalist's wife and daughters killed? ›
Carol Hunt, 61, wife of BBC horse racing commentator, John Hunt, and their daughters, Hannah Hunt, 28, and Louise Hunt, 25, died from injuries sustained in an attack in Bushey, just northwest of London, on Tuesday, according to police and Britain's public broadcaster.
Who were the three people murdered in London? ›
The victims were Carol Hunt, 61, who was the wife of racing commentator John Hunt, and their two daughters Hannah Hunt, 28, and Louise Hunt, 25, it was revealed on Wednesday afternoon.
Which TV host wife and daughters were killed? ›
BBC Racing radio commentator John Hunt wants people to appreciate life following the crossbow killing of three of his family members. On the evening of Tuesday, July 9, Hunt's wife, Carol, 61, and two of their daughters, Hannah, 28, and Louise, 25, were killed by a man with a crossbow in a home in Bushey, England.
Who was the BBC radio commentator killed? ›
The BBC confirmed that the women killed were the family of John Hunt — his 61-year-old wife Carol Hunt and their daughters Louise and Hannah, aged 25 and 28, respectively.
Who is the most famous serial killer in Britain? ›
Harold Shipman – Shipman is officially the worst serial killer that the UK has ever known. A GP that murdered his patients using a lethal dose of diamorphine, between the years of 1975 and 1998 Shipman killed an unimaginable 218 people, all of them his patients.
Who was the football commentator family murdered? ›
Wife and daughters of BBC sports commentator John Hunt found murdered in Bushey. Carol Hunt, 61, who was married to Mr Hunt, and two of their daughters, died in Bushey on Tuesday evening. Police say they were killed in a "targeted attack" with a crossbow.
Who was the TV presenter killed with a crossbow? ›
British police find suspect after killing of BBC commentator's wife and 2 daughters The BBC confirmed that the women killed were members of the family of its commentator John Hunt. The suspect, Kyle Clifford, was detained in north London after the brutal crossbow attack.
TIL the woman sitting in front of Phil Hartman in the opening credits of SNL was his wife, Brynn, who later killed him out of jealousy for his fame.
What was the case of Missy Karen and Laura? ›
Michele Yvette "Missy" Avila (February 8, 1968 – October 1, 1985) was an American teenager who was murdered by her former best friends and rivals, Karen Severson and Laura Doyle, in October 1985. Los Angeles, California, U.S.
What is the documentary about the writer who killed his wife? ›
Accident or murder? After the mysterious death of his wife, author Michael Peterson watches his life go under the microscope. Watch all you want.
Who was the notorious killer in London? ›
Jack the Ripper, pseudonymous murderer of at least five women in or near the Whitechapel district of London's East End between August and November 1888. The case is one of the most famous unsolved mysteries of English crime.
Who was the BBC presenters family killed? ›
The BBC said that the women were Carol Hunt, the wife of its commentator John Hunt, and two of their daughters. A huge search involving armed officers was launched for suspect, Kyle Clifford, with police warning the public not to approach the 26-year-old.
Who was the serial killer in 1950s London? ›
Serial killer John Christie, active during the 1940s and early 1950s, who is known to have murdered at least eight people at his home on Rillington Place. Timothy Evans was wrongfully hanged for some of the murders - with the case playing a major part in the removal of capital punishment for murder in 1965.
Who was the boyfriend of the Bushey killers? ›
Alex Klein, who was in a relationship with Hannah Hunt, shared photos of the two of them together in a social media post. She was killed along with her mother and sister in Hertfordshire. The boyfriend of one of three women killed in a crossbow attack has paid tribute to the "love of my life".
Who killed Robert Kissel? ›
Robert Kissel [Kissel Family Handout]
Nancy Kissel killed her husband Robert, a senior executive for the investment bank Merrill Lynch, by slipping the sedatives into his drink and, incredibly, asking her six-year-old daughter to serve it to him.
How many children does John Hunt have? ›
Personal life. Hunt is married to Lois, a former nurse, and they have four children together including Harry Hunt. In press reports he is described as having the "bearing and manner of a former military man" and being "like an ex-SAS officer", as well as "famously tight-lipped".
