Hannah Hunt, 28, sadly succumbed to her injuries and died alongside her mother Carol, 61, and younger sister Louise, 25, after a brutal attack at their family home in Bushy, Hertfordshire, on July 9
A victim of crossbow killer Kyle Clifford sent a heartbreaking message pleading for help just moments before police burst in and found her at home.
Hannah Hunt, 28, the daughter of BBC racing commentator John Hunt, messaged saying she had been “tied up” before cops found her. She sadly succumbed to her injuries – a crossbow bolt in her chest – and died, as did her mother Carol, 61, and younger sister Louise, 25, following the vicious assault at their home in Bushy, Hertfordshire in July last year.
Kyle Clifford confessed to the triple murder back in January, and also admitted falsely imprisoning ex-girlfriend Louise, possessing a 10-inch butcher’s knife and an MXT-405 Compound Crossbow. He was also charged with cruelly raping her, but jurors yesterday took mere minutes to return a guilty verdict, dismissing claims that the DNA found was from consensual sex.
He is set to be sentenced for the rape next week, with prosecutors expected to demand a whole-life term for his vile crimes. At an inquest in July, the court heard Hannah’s tragic last text asking an unnamed member of the public to contact the police, telling them the person responsible was still at the house.
Ms Hunt was then able to call 999, reporting that she had been shot, as had her mother and sister, the 10-minute hearing at Hertfordshire Coroner’s Court was told. She gave her address before the call cut out. When officers arrived, they found her alive in the main doorway of the home, with a crossbow bolt still in her chest, senior coroner for Hertfordshire Geoffrey Sullivan heard.
In the days before her death at the hands of her evil ex-partner, Louise had taken tragic steps to escape him, with the support of her concerned loved ones. Clifford first met “caring, positive and happy” Louise through a dating site, the court heard, with prosecutors telling how friends and family had been “concerned” about the “effect of her relationship” with Clifford.
One of Louise’s friends claimed Clifford had a “nasty temper”, while another recalled how he’d been “disrespectful, rude and arrogant”, as per prosecutor Alison Morgan KC. Mrs Morgan explained: “They hoped that the relationship would come to an end. A friend of Louise became aware that Louise was concerned about the relationship itself and wanted to end it.
“Louise had told her about the defendant’s behaviour towards her and that she had come to realise that he was not a person that she wanted to be with anymore. Louise made it clear that she was ending the relationship, which her friend supported. Louise was firm in rebuffing any attempts by the defendant for them to get back together. The prosecution alleges that this firm rejection by Louise which angered the defendant and provides the context and motive for the events of July 9.”
Clifford is said to have had relationships with two other women he worked with while he was still with Louise, keeping these relationships a secret from her. Ultimately, Louise ended their 18-month romance after they’d attended a friend’s wedding in Scarborough, North Yorkshire.
Mrs Morgan told the court: “A friend of Louise, Mary Hammon, witnessed the defendant’s unpleasant behaviour towards others, describing him not caring what others thought and doing what he wanted, including behaving in a rude manner.
“Mary describes the final catalyst for the break-up being the friend’s wedding which took place at the end of June 2024. The defendant implied that he had slept with a number of people at the wedding, which upset Louise. The defendant also made a series of patronising comments about Louise’s ability to use an oven.”