Kyle Clifford raped his ex-girlfriend in a “violent, sexual act of spite” before murdering her, her sister with a crossbow and stabbing their mother to death with a butcher’s knife, a court has heard.
Clifford is alleged to have become “angry” when his 25-year-old former partner Louise Hunt ended their 18-month relationship before “carefully” planning and executing the murders on July 9, 2024.
Cambridge Crown Court heard that Clifford tricked 61-year-old Carol Hunt, wife of BBC racing commentator John Hunt, into letting him into the family home before stabbing her to death in a “brutal knife attack”.
After killing Carol and Louise, he fatally shot 28-year-old Hannah Hunt when she returned to the family home in Ashlyn Close in Bushey, Hertfordshire, after work.
Clifford previously admitted three counts of murder, one of false imprisonment against Louise Hunt, and two counts of possession of offensive weapons – the crossbow and the knife.
After hearing part of the prosecution’s case, trial judge Mr Justice Bennathan urged jurors to remain “calm and collected” despite the shocking events, reminding them to focus on the rape charge.
Clifford currently denies a single charge of rape.
Prosecutor, Alison Morgan KC told the jury: “During the course of this prolonged incident of violence, the prosecution alleges that the defendant raped Louise Hunt.
“It was a violent, sexual act of spite, before he then killed her.
“You will have to determine that allegation against him.”
The court heard that customers of Louise’s dog grooming business, based in the Hunt family’s garden, were using the gate at the side of the house “not realising” what was happening inside.
After the attack, Clifford, who served in the military from 2019 for about three years, was subject to a manhunt for several hours before being found injured in Lavender Hill Cemetery in Enfield, north London, after shooting himself in the chest with the crossbow.
John Hunt and his third daughter Amy are now the only surviving members of the family of five.
Relationship breakdown
The court heard that Louise’s friends and family had hoped her relationship with Clifford would end, concerned about his behaviour towards her.
Jurors were told that Louise confided in friends about his “nasty temper” and “aggressive manner,” while her sister Hannah described him as “disrespectful, rude and arrogant”.
Clifford had also been seeing other women while dating Louise, hiding his affairs from her, the court heard.
Five days before the murders, Louise wrote a note on her phone titled “When you’re sad, look,” listing concerns about Clifford, including his racism, negative comments about transgender people, and use of “belittling language”.
Prosecutor Ms Morgan said that in the days before the attacks, Clifford searched for crossbows online and viewed pornography, including a video of ex-HMP Wandsworth officer Linda De Sousa Abreu, who admitted having sex with a prisoner last year.
Ms Morgan said Clifford’s violent intentions were clear from “his use of weapons and his sexual preoccupations”.
Addressing the defendant’s motive to kill his victims, Ms Morgan said: “Louise instigated the end of the relationship, supported by her friends and family.
“In the days that followed, the message prompted the defendant to try to rekindle the relationship in various ways, all of which were rebuffed by Louise Hunt.
“This rejection angered the defendant.
“He was angry at Louise, but also at the Hunt family generally, as he correctly assumed that friends and family members had advised Louise to end the relationship with him.”
The trial continues.
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