Cowardly crossbow killer Kyle Clifford has ‘refused’ to attend his sentencing hearing for the horrific triple murder of his ex-girlfriend and her mum and sister.
The former soldier, 26, raped Louise Hunt, 25, in a ‘violent, sexual act of spite’ while holding her captive for hours at her home in Bushey, Hertfordshire, before shooting her with a crossbow.
He also used the weapon to kill her sister Hannah, 28, and a butcher’s knife to stab their 61-year-old mum Carol Hunt, who was married to BBC racing commentator John Hunt, on July 9 last year.
Clifford is being sentenced at Cambridge Crown Court, where he was found guilty of rape last week, having already admitted the three murders along with charges of false imprisonment and having offensive weapons.
Judge Mr Justice Bennathan told the court this morning the triple killer was asked to attend the hearing in person or by video-link but ‘refused’.
He said he had an inquiry from Belmarsh Prison ‘as to whether I would order restraints so he (Kyle Clifford) should be brought to the video room’.
‘I have declined on the basis that the idea of a man in a wheelchair being put in restraints and potentially disrupting these proceedings… is simply not appropriate or suitable,’ the senior judge added.
‘If the defendant lacks the courage to face today, so be it – but I’m conscious part of this morning will be people paying tribute to the three women who died, and I’m not having that disrupted by anything.’
Family members of three women, including Mr Hunt, listened to proceedings from extra chairs set out beside the jury seats, with more people occupying the courtroom’s public gallery.
The court was specifically chosen for Clifford’s needs as the dock is wheelchair accessible.
He is paralysed from the chest down after turning the crossbow on himself as armed police closed in a day after the attack.
Judges could soon get powers to force criminals to appear in the dock when they are sentenced.
The change to the law is expected to be made in the Victims, Courts and Public Protection Bill, which will be laid in Parliament in the next few months.
During the trial, jurors heard an ‘enraged’ Clifford started plotting the attack on July 9 last year days after Louise called an end to their 18-month relationship.
Prosecutor Alison Morgan KC told them: ‘If he could not have her, no one else was going to, and he was going to take her family down with her.’
(Picture: Facebook)
In the days before the attack, he had searched online for how to purchase a crossbow and accessed pornography.
Less than 24 hours before the murders, Clifford searched for the ‘violent misogyny promoted’ by controversial social media influencer Andrew Tate’s podcast.
Mr Justice Bennathan ruled jurors could not be told about the Tate videos because it would be ‘deeply prejudicial’, saying Mr Tate was ‘almost a poster boy for misogynists’.
He also spoke to his brother, also in prison for murder, the day before the attack.
Clifford spent £350 ordering a crossbow, six bolts and a cocking device online. He also ordered an air gun, which never arrived, along with duct tape, a ‘high level butchering knife’ for £89 and a length of rope.
He gained access to the family home by deceiving Carol Hunt by claiming he was there to drop off some of Louise’s belongings.
After killing her in a ‘brutal’ attack, he ‘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 when she returned to the property in the quiet cul-de-sac of Ashlyn Close after work.
The court was told a faint scream could be heard from the address shortly after Louise entered the house.
Hannah is heard on audio at the Hunt family home saying ‘Kyle I swear to God’ after returning home and appearing to find Clifford in the house.
The court heard Louise had ended her relationship with Clifford supported by her friends and family. She said he had a ‘nasty temper’ and behaved in an ‘aggressive manner’.
Following the killings, a brief manhunt was launched and Clifford, of Enfield, north London, was found in a cemetery near his home after shooting himself with the crossbow.
He spent 10 weeks in hospital with a round-the-clock police guard before he could be interviewed, on September 16 last year.
After the convictions, Chief Superintendent Jon Simpson said: ‘The scale of Kyle Clifford’s crimes is unprecedented in terms of male violence against women and girls and is totally shocking.’
Clifford showed no emotion when asked about the killings during his interview but appeared to choke back tears after he is asked about a note on his phone, written about himself.
In the self-pitying note, he wrote: ‘Please don’t think of this as me throwing my life away. I have lived and I am grateful for everything and everyone that has been a part of it.
‘It is now my time to leave and be at peace as this is what I ultimately want.
‘I know you will all have so many questions and wish you could have done something different to prevent this however none of you have failed and there is simply nothing any of you could have done.
‘This is my decision to just be at peace.
‘You all have to take care of each other and speak to each other because that will be the best thing for you all.
‘I love you all so much.’
He also refused to engage with questions about a note on his phone, addressed ‘to myself’, where he said: ‘I don’t want to live my life without her.’
Clifford wrote: ‘I don’t want to experience new things. Nothing I can think of can make me happy.
‘I know I could have gone to therapy, found faith and become a new better person but I just simply don’t want to.
‘I am so sorry I didn’t wait to move on and find my future wife, have the children I always wanted.’
Detective Chief Inspector Nick Gardner said Clifford ‘clearly knew there were healthy ways of dealing with the breakup’ but: ‘He chose not to take those paths. He simply “didn’t want to” do that.’
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