Hemel Hempstead: Man 'stabbed wife and daughter then started house fire'
A man stabbed his wife and daughter to death before setting himself and their house on fire, an inquest heard.
Gary Walker, 57, killed Caroline Walker, 50, and Katie Walker, 24, at Stuarts Close in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, on March 29 last year, days after the start of the first coronavirus lockdown. The inquest concluded Mr Walker, found dead after the fire, died by suicide. Senior coroner Geoffrey Sullivan said the two women died from stab wounds. The inquest in Hatfield on Thursday heard Mrs Walker suffered 39 stab wounds and Miss Walker 38. Both had defensive injuries to their arms. Det Con Jason Rice, from the Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire Major Crime Unit said that, after the attacks, Mr Walker set himself on fire. Neighbours called emergency services after seeing smoke, with firefighters finding Mr Walker dead at the bottom of the stairs, his wife's body in the living room and that of their daughter in an upstairs bedroom. Mr Sullivan said: "The reason for these tragic events remains a mystery." The coroner recorded Mr Walker's medical cause of death as being consistent with the effects of fire, concluding he died by suicide. He recorded Mrs Walker and Miss Walker's medical causes of death as stab wounds to the chest, adding that they were killed unlawfully. Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If you have a story suggestion email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk Related Internet Links Hertfordshire Coroner Service