Man admits killing BBC presenter's family in UK crossbow attack

London — A 26-year-old man pleaded guilty Wednesday to murdering a mother and two of her daughters in their family home just north of London last year, in a attack involving a crossbow and a knife. Prosecutors said Kyle Clifford killed his ex-girlfriend Louise Hunt, 25, and her sister Hannah Hunt, 28, 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 of false imprisonment and two counts of possession of offensive weapons – the crossbow and a 10-inch knife. He has pleaded not guilty to the charge of raping Louise Hunt.

The three women, who are members of the family of popular BBC radio racing commentator John Hunt, were found seriously injured at their home in the quiet residential area of Bushey in the north-east of the capital.

Triple murder of Bushey — Photos left at floral tributes in Bushey, Hertfordshire, just north of London, where Carol Hunt, 61, wife of BBC Five Live racing commentator John Hunt, and two of their daughters, Hannah, 28, and Louise, 25 years old, were killed in a crossbow attack at their home, were seen the next day, July 11, 2024.

Jonathan Brady/PA Images/Getty

Police and ambulances attempted to save the three women, but they were pronounced dead at the scene.

Police launched a manhunt for the suspect before he was found injured in a cemetery in Enfield, north London.

Clifford, who served in the military starting in 2019 for about three years, had shot himself in the chest with a crossbow.

British women killed — An undated photo released by Hertfordshire Police on July 10, 2024 shows Kyle Clifford, arrested in connection with the murder of three women using a crossbow and a knife, in Bushey, England.

Hertfordshire Police/PA

The brutal killings have reignited debate in Britain over the laws governing the possession of crossbows. Following the attacks, the Minister of the Interior, Yvette Cooper said she was urgently considering whether stricter crossbow laws were needed, but no proposals have yet been put forward.

In Britain, citizens do not need a license to own a crossbow, but it is illegal to carry one in public without reasonable excuse and it is illegal to possess one before the age of 18 or to sell one to a person under 18 years of age.

These weapons have been used in several high-profile crimes in recent years.

In December 2021, a would-be attacker carrying a loaded crossbow broke into Windsor Castle. seeking to kill Queen Elizabeth II. Jaswant Singh Chail pleaded guilty to treason and was sentenced last year to nine years in prison.