A man has confessed to murder in a crossbow attack on the family of a BBC presenter in Great Britain
London — A 26-year-old man pleaded guilty Wednesday to murdering a mother and her two daughters in their family home north of London last year, in an attack that involved a crossbow and a knife. Prosecutors said Kyle Clifford killed his 25-year-old ex-girlfriend Louise Hunt and her 28-year-old sister Hannah Hunt with a crossbow before stabbing their mother Carol Hunt, 61, to death on July 9.
Appearing via video link at Cambridge Crown Court, Clifford admitted three counts of murder, one count of false imprisonment and two counts of possessing an offensive weapon – a crossbow and a 10-inch knife. He pleaded not guilty to the charge of raping Louise Hunt.
The three women, who are the family of well-known BBC radio racing commentator John Hunt, were found with serious injuries at their home in the quiet residential area of Bushey, north-east of the capital.
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The police and the emergency team tried to save the three women, but they were pronounced dead at the scene of the accident.
Police launched a manhunt for the suspect before he was found injured at a cemetery in Enfield, north London.
Clifford, who as of 2019 had served in the army for about three years, shot himself in the chest with a crossbow.
Hertfordshire Police/AP
The brutal killings have renewed debate in Britain about laws governing the ownership of crossbows. After the attack, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said that she was considering it urgently whether stricter crossbow laws are needed, but no proposals have been made yet.
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 and illegal for an under-18 to own a crossbow or sell it to someone under 18.
The weapon has been used in several high-profile crimes in recent years.
In December 2021, a would-be attacker broke into Windsor Castle with a loaded crossbow trying to kill Queen Elizabeth II. Jaswant Singh Chail pleaded guilty to treason and was sentenced to nine years in prison last year.
