A former soldier who slaughtered the wife and two daughters of BBC star John Hunt after invading their home dramatically admitted the murders today – but denied raping his ex-girlfriend before she died.
Kyle Clifford murdered his former partner Louise Hunt, 25, and her sister Hannah, 28, with a crossbow before stabbing the racing commentator’s wife Carol, 61, to death at their home in Bushey, Hertfordshire, last July.
Clifford, 26, was arrested in a north London cemetery following a near 24-hour manhunt, but was unable to be interviewed while he was treated for self-sustained crossbow injury.
Today, the ex-security guard appeared at Cambridge Crown Court where he changed his plea and admitted murdering the three women. He denies one count of rape and will go on trial for this charge later in the year.
Brave Hannah made a harrowing 999 call and told police she feared she was going to die after her sister and mother were attacked.
When officers swooped on the property, Hannah was still alive in the doorway with a crossbow bolt in her chest, but despite desperate attempts could not be saved.
Clifford, who served in the military from 2019 for around three years, had tied the arms and ankles of his ex-girlfriend, Louise, with duct tape before he also shot her through the chest with a crossbow.
Their mother, Carol, was stabbed in the knee, hands, back and torso after Clifford set upon her with a 10-inch butcher’s knife.
A photo issued by Hertfordshire Police of Kyle Clifford, who was charged with the murders
John Hunt is pictured with his wife Carol, who was killed alongside two of their two daughters
Hannah Hunt was killed alongside her mother and sister in the crossbow attack in Bushey
Louise Hunt (pictured), sister of Hannah Hunt and daughter of Carol and John Hunt, was killed
Appearing via video link at Cambridge Crown Court this morning, Clifford pleaded guilty to three counts of murder, one of false imprisonment against Louise Hunt, and two counts of possession of offensive weapons – the crossbow and the knife.
He pleaded not guilty to a charge of raping Louise. Clifford, of Enfield, North London, will face a trial for the charge of rape at the same court on March 3.
Seven years after his brother was jailed for life with a minimum of 23 years for murder, Clifford now faces joining him behind bars after admitting to killing Carol, Hannah and Louise inside their own house.
Harrowing details of the attack, which took place at around 6.30pm on July 9 last year, started to unravel in the days after.
Neighbours of the £800,000 suburban home in a quiet cul-de-sac recalled hearing distressing screams – so piercing that they were initially mistaken for that of a child.
It later emerged that the desperate cries for help were coming from the home where the three defenceless women were ambushed in their own home by the crossbow-wielding killer.
After cruelly attacking his victims and leaving them to die, the former military man went on the run, sparking a nationwide manhunt to track him down.
Shortly after walking out of the property, leaving a mother and her two daughters behind, Clifford was captured on doorbell footage calmly striding away with what appeared to be a crossbow tucked under his arm hidden beneath a white sheet.
Hertfordshire Police took the unusual step of naming and picturing Clifford as they desperately tried to hunt down Britain’s most wanted man at the time.
The evil killer was arrested around 24 hours later after being found in the Lavender Hill Cemetery, in Enfield, with self-inflicted injuries.
Dramatic footage showed the fugitive being stretchered away from the scene before he was bundled into the back of an ambulance by armed police and paramedics.
After the attack, a picture emerged of Clifford in army gear, holding a gun with his face covered in camouflage paint
A court artist’s sketch of Kyle Clifford appearing via videolink at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on September 17
Racing commentator Mr Hunt, who has another daughter, Amy, bravely returned to work 60 days after the tragic incident.
At the time of the fatal attack, he said in a joint statement with Amy: ‘The devastation that we are experiencing cannot be put into words.’
In a further statement read by his colleague Matt Chapman on Sky Sports Racing, Mr Hunt said: ‘Notwithstanding the horrid evil that’s swept through our lives, wreaking devastation on an unimaginable scale, the counter to that has been the breathtaking messages of support, some of which are still to be read.’
He added: ‘Amy, my eldest daughter, has been magnificently inspirational with her control and support for me, which I am trying, trying so hard, to replicate.
‘Every message has felt so important, the same as a reassuring hug.
‘We know people are worried about us. We will get through this.’
Clifford joined the Army in 2019, but is believed to have left after a short period of service in 2022 after failing to impress his superiors. It’s understood Clifford served as a trooper, the equivalent to a private, in the Queen’s Dragoon Guards.
After the attack, a picture also emerged showing him in army gear, holding a gun with his face covered in camouflage paint.
His guilty pleas come seven years after his brother was convicted of murder after a trial at the Old Bailey.
Bradley Clifford, a plumber, was 23 when he mowed down Soban Khan, 18, and Jahshua Francis, 19, on their moped after they struck his ‘prized’ Ford Mustang car with a bottle.
Both teenagers were flung from the moped by the impact. Although Mr Francis escaped without serious injuries, Bradley beat Mr Khan as he lay on the ground injured.
The incident followed a row outside a bar in Enfield in which Clifford’s car received superficial damage. He flew into a rage and pursued the pair in a 20-minute high speed chase before crashing into the moped.
Bradley was jailed for life in 2018 and told to serve at least 23 years for the murder of Mr Khan and attempted GBH with intent on Mr Francis.
This was the moment that Clifford could be seen receiving medical treatment on a stretcher in the cemetery in North London
Doorbell footage showed a man believed to be Kyle Clifford walking away from a house containing the dead bodies of his ex-girlfriend, her mother and her sister
Kyle Clifford with his ex-girlfriend Louise Hunt, who was one of the three victims
Forensics were seen outside Lavender Hill Cemetery in Enfield as the manhunt for Kyle Clifford continued
Armed police searching Lavender Hill cemetery in Enfield as the hunt for fugitive Kyle Clifford took a new turn
Friends leave flowers on Ashlyn Close in Bushey, Hertfordshire, after the attack on July 11
Mourners attend a service at St James’s Church in Bushey on July 11 following the incident
A view of the scene on July 11 on Ashlyn Close in Bushey, where the Hunt family lived
Following Clifford’s attack on Mr Hunt’s family, the Home Office said Home Secretary Yvette Cooper was urgently considering whether tougher crossbow laws were needed.
In the King’s Speech, which took place just days after the killings, there was no proposal to take action on crossbows.
The review is understood to be ongoing and no decisions have yet been made.
The previous government looked at bringing in firearms licensing-style rules in the wake of an attempt to kill the late Queen with a crossbow.
There is currently no registration system for owning a crossbow, no requirement for a licence and they appear to be readily available to buy online.
But it is illegal for anyone under 18 to buy or own one, with anyone carrying a crossbow in public without a reasonable excuse facing up to four years behind bars.
