Suspected triple murder with crossbow prompts British police manhunt

In a statement, Hertfordshire Police said officers were called to the Hunt family’s home in Bushey shortly before 7pm on Tuesday and found the women seriously injured. All three died at the scene.

Police said they had been searching for a suspect, 26-year-old Kyle Clifford, believed to be in Hertfordshire or north London, since Tuesday evening. Officers said the women were shot in what appeared to be a “targeted incident.”

“The manhunt also involves armed police officers and specialist search teams who are responding urgently to this horrific incident. The incident is currently believed to have involved a crossbow, but other weapons may have been used,” Hertfordshire Police Chief Superintendent Jon Simpson said at a press conference on Wednesday.

Two helicopters circled parts of the north London town of Enfield, where Clifford is from, and armed police searched a property in Enfield, the Independent newspaper said.

According to British news agencies, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, who took office last week following the Labour Party’s election victory, is considering tougher laws for crossbow shooters and will evaluate the results of a Home Office investigation conducted earlier this year.

The previous government had considered tightening laws regarding crossbows after would-be assassin Jaswant Singh Chail attempted to break into Windsor Castle and kill Queen Elizabeth II with such a weapon on Christmas morning 2021.

There is currently no registration system or licensing requirement for owning a crossbow in the UK. However, it is illegal for anyone under 18 to own a crossbow.

In February, the Conservative government’s Home Office launched an eight-week inquiry into introducing a licensing system and tighter restrictions on the purchase and sale of crossbows, similar to those already in place for firearms.

The office completed the review in April, but the recent elections apparently delayed further action.

In a tweet on Wednesday, Cooper called the killings “shocking” and said she would be kept “fully updated” on the status of the investigation.

John Hunt’s fellow sports journalists and other figures from the world of racing expressed their condolences to the Hunt family on social media.

“Impossible to comprehend the pain,” ITV racing commentator Matt Chapman wrote on X. “Just know that we are all here for you John. We love you mate – racing loves you.”