This undated handout photo issued on Wednesday March 6, 2025 by the Hertfordshire Police shows a knife packaging of Kyle Clifford who has been found guilty at Cambridge Crown Court of raping his ex-partner Louise Hunt in an attack which saw him murder her and her sister with a crossbow and their mother with a butcher's knife. (Hertfordshire Police via AP)

LONDON (AP) — A 26-year-old man who had pleaded guilty to the murder of three women at their family home just north of London was found guilty Thursday of raping one of them, his ex-partner, during the attack.

After around 45 minutes of deliberations, the jury at Cambridge Crown Court convicted Kyle Clifford of raping his 25-year-old ex-girlfriend Louise Hunt during the attack on the family that involved a crossbow and a 10-inch knife.

Clifford had pleaded guilty in January of murdering Louise and her 28-year-old sister Hannah Hunt with a crossbow and their mother, Carol Hunt, 61, with a knife on July 9, 2024. The three women were the wife and two of the daughters of BBC horse racing commentator John Hunt.

Clifford is due to be sentenced on Tuesday.

Clifford, who did not appear in court after refusing to leave his cell at Belmarsh Prison in southeast London, had denied raping Louise in January, when he admitted to three counts of murder, one of false imprisonment and two counts of possession of offensive weapons.

Detective Chief Inspector Nick Gardner of the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit, said Clifford's failure to attend his trial was an “absolute act of cowardice.”

During the case, the jury was shown evidence that Clifford gained access to the family home in the quiet residential neighborhood of Bushey, northeast of the capital, by deceiving Carol Hunt on the pretext he was returning Louise's belongings, before brutally stabbing her to death.

Clifford then “lay in wait” for an hour for Louise to enter the house, before restraining, raping and ultimately murdering her with a crossbow. He then fatally shot Hannah Hunt when she returned to the property after work.

Prosecutors said Clifford had become “enraged” when his ex-girlfriend ended their 18-month relationship. They said he then “carefully” planned the murders, describing the rape of Louise as a “violent, sexual act of spite.”

Judge Joel Bennathan described Clifford’s crimes as “dreadful” and “almost unspeakable.”

Following the murders, police launched a manhunt for the suspect before he was found injured the following day in a cemetery in Enfield, north London. Clifford, who served in the military from 2019 for around three years, had shot himself in the chest with the crossbow. He remains in a wheelchair.

In evidence that was not presented to the jury as a result of a decision by the judge, prosecutors said Clifford searched for the podcast of self-styled misogynist Andrew Tate less than 24 hours before the murders. They said the “violent misogyny promoted” by Tate "fueled” Clifford’s attacks.

News from © The Associated Press, 2025