A man confesses to murder in a crossbow attack on the family of a BBC presenter in the UK

London A 26-year-old man pleaded guilty on Wednesday to murdering a mother and her two daughters in the family home in north London last year. The attack used a crossbow and a knife. 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, prosecutors said.

Appearing via video link at Cambridge Crown Court, Clifford admitted three counts of murder, one count of false imprisonment and two counts of possessing offensive weapons – a crossbow and a 10-inch knife. He pleaded not guilty to the rape of Louise Hunt.

The three women, the family of famous BBC radio commentator John Hunt, were found seriously injured in their home in the quiet residential neighborhood of Bushey in the north-east of the capital.

Police and ambulance crews tried to rescue the three women, but they were declared dead at the scene.

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

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

The brutal murders have renewed debate in Britain over the laws governing crossbow ownership. In the wake of the attacks, Interior Minister Yvette Cooper said She said she was thinking 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 it is illegal to possess one under the age of 18, or sell it to someone under 18.

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

In December 2021, a would-be attacker carrying a crossbow stormed Windsor Castle The quest to kill Queen Elizabeth II. Jaswant Singh Cheel pleaded guilty to treason and was sentenced last year to nine years in prison.