Crossbow laws will be urgently looked at after triple killing, says Security Minister Dan Jarvis
A decision on toughening crossbow laws in the wake of the triple killings in Hertfordshire will be taken "in the near future", the Security Minister said on Thursday.
Dan Jarvis said the Home Secretary is looking at the existing legislation "literally as we speak" following the deaths of Carol Hunt, 61, wife of BBC 5 Live racing commentator John Hunt, and two of their daughters, Hannah, 28, and Louise, 25.
Kyle Clifford, 26, who was wanted in connection with the crossbow killings was found with injuries in Lavender Hill Cemetery in Enfield on Wednesday afternoon and taken to a major trauma centre for treatment.
Asked whether laws on owning the deadly weapons should be tightened, Mr Jarvis told Sky News: "I know that the Home Secretary [Yvette Cooper] is looking at this literally as we speak.
“There was a call for evidence that was initiated a number of months ago. She will want to consider that evidence in the round.
"She'll want to look clearly, very carefully at what happened yesterday - devastating events - and she will take a view in the near future."
A manhunt was launched after the three women were found fatally injured in a house in the quiet cul-de-sac of Ashlyn Close, in Bushey, Hertfordshire, just after 7pm on Tuesday.
Neighbours recalled hearing screaming on Tuesday evening as the "traumatic" incident unfolded.
In a press conference before Clifford was found, Chief Superintendent Jon Simpson from Hertfordshire Police said the killings were believed to have been "targeted" and the suspect armed with a crossbow.
There is currently no registration system for owning a crossbow, no requirement for a licence and are readily available to buy online.
But it is illegal for anyone under 18 to purchase or own one, with anyone carrying a the weapon in public without a reasonable excuse facing up to four years behind bars.
Ms Cooper will look at the findings of a review carried out earlier this year after the deaths of John Hunt’s family in Bushey, Hertfordshire, on Tuesday.
Options to strengthen the laws around owning a crossbow have been in discussion by the Home Office for several years.
A review was ordered by former Home Secretary Priti Patel after would-be assassin Jaswant Singh Chail was encouraged by an AI chatbot to break into Windsor Castle on Christmas Day 2021 with a loaded weapon to kill the late Queen.
A crossbow was also used in the murder of mother-of-six Sana Muhammad in Ilford in 2018.
Killer Ramanodge Unmathallegadoo was jailed for 33 years for what the judge called a “brutal and evil attack”.
In a report to the Home Office into the killing by former Scotland Yard detective Bill Griffiths , he called for the Government to impose stricter laws around crossbows.
A Home Office spokeswoman said: "We keep legislation under constant review and a call for evidence was launched earlier this year to look at whether further controls on crossbows should be introduced.
"The Home Secretary will swiftly consider the findings to see if laws need to be tightened further."
