LONDON — A 26-year-old man has admitted to murdering a mother and her two daughters in a brutal attack that took place at their home just north of London last year, involving both a crossbow and a knife.

Kyle Clifford entered a guilty plea on Wednesday to the charges of killing his 25-year-old former partner, Louise Hunt, her 28-year-old sister, Hannah Hunt, and their mother, 61-year-old Carol Hunt, during the violent incident on July 9.

During a video link hearing at Cambridge Crown Court, Clifford acknowledged his guilt on all three counts of murder. He also confessed to one count of false imprisonment and two counts related to the dangerous possession of weapons, which included the crossbow and a 10-inch knife. However, he maintained his innocence regarding an accusation of raping Louise Hunt.

The tragic incident took place in Bushey, a peaceful residential area northeast of London, where the three victims were discovered with severe injuries. Despite the efforts of police and emergency medical teams to save them, they were pronounced dead at the scene.

Authorities conducted a manhunt for Clifford following the attack, eventually locating him injured in a cemetery in Enfield, north London. Reports stated that he had inflicted a self-inflicted crossbow wound to his chest.

In the aftermath of the attack, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper expressed her concerns and stated that she was reviewing whether more stringent regulations regarding crossbow ownership were necessary. Currently, people in the UK do not require a license to possess a crossbow, although it is prohibited to carry one in public without a valid justification.

The weapon in question has been linked to a number of notable criminal cases in recent years. One such incident occurred in December 2021, when a man armed with a loaded crossbow attempted to break into Windsor Castle with the intention of assassinating Queen Elizabeth II. Jaswant Singh Chail was later convicted of treason and sentenced to nine years in prison.