Ten-month-old baby boy among three children found dead in Sea Mills

A ten-month-old boy, a three-year-old girl and a seven-year-old boy were the three children tragically found dead at a property in Sea Mills.

A 42-year-old woman was arrested at the scene and a “highly sensitive and complex” murder investigation is now underway.

Police were called to the house on Blaise Walk by a member of the public concerned for the welfare of the occupants in the early hours of Sunday morning. Officers arrived at the scene at around 12.40am to find the three children, who could not be saved.

Speaking on Monday morning, chief inspector Vicks Hayward-Melen called the deaths of three young children a great shock to the entire community and a “terrible and deeply distressing tragedy”.

“Our thoughts are very much with the children’s loved ones who are going through an horrendous ordeal,” said chief inspector Hayward-Melen.

“Forensic post-mortem examinations will now be carried out on the children to establish the cause of death and it’s important we don’t give further detail on this until the proper processes have been carried out.

“The post-mortem examinations are not likely to be completed until the middle to the end of this week at the earliest.

“Formal identification has not yet taken place, but we believe the victims are a boy aged seven, a girl of three and a 10-month-old boy.

“Their next of kin have been informed and are being given all the help and support they need by specialist family liaison officers.

“A 42-year-old woman was arrested at the scene and taken to hospital due to injuries she’d sustained. Her condition is not life-threatening, and she remains in police custody at this time.

“Uniformed officers from the Neighbourhood Policing team will be in the area in the coming days to provide reassurance and support to the local community, so please speak to us if you have any concerns or worries.

“It’s important to stress we are treating this as an isolated incident and we don’t believe there to be any ongoing risk to the wider community.

“We’ve been humbled by the community response to this tragedy. At a time of great sadness and disbelief, we’ve seen spontaneous acts of care and support. Within hours of the incident occurring, a local church was opened up for people to gather and mourn.

“This is what being in a community is all about and we’d like to thank all those who continue to offer this important and selfless service.

“The death of such young children is a great shock to the whole community and this incident has had a profound and deep impact on all of us in the police.

“We’ll be making sure all those involved in the response and the subsequent investigation are given any welfare support they may need.”

A baby, a three-year-old girl and a seven-year-old boy were the three children tragically found dead at a property in Sea Mills

Chief inspector Hayward-Melen said the Major Crime Investigation Team are in the very early stages of what will be “a highly sensitive, complex and thorough investigation”, and said it will take time to establish all the facts.

Further enquiries will be carried out at the scene through the week and police cordons will be in place while this is done.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct has been notified and a mandatory formal referral will be made on Monday.

Anyone with information that could help is asked to call the police on 101 and give the call handler the reference 5224042788, or contact the police through their website.

All photos: Betty Woolerton

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