EastEnders murder: Police knew suspect beat star and children
POLICE were warned three weeks ago that the partner of EastEnders actress Sian Blake had been abusing her and her children – but they did nothing to stop him fleeing the country.
Officers were told on December 16 that Arthur SimpsonKent had been abusing Ms Blake, 43, and their two sons after a family member called a child violence helpline.
And when they interviewed him at home that day, Simpson-Kent, 48, admitted the trio had ‘gone missing’. But police did not arrest him or return to search the house for two days – by which time Simpson-Kent had fled to Africa. It took police another 12 days to issue a public appeal for information about the family’s disappearance.
Scotland Yard is accused of making a string of blunders in its handling of the murders of Ms Blake and her sons – Zachary, eight, and Amon, four. It took them three weeks to find their bodies, despite the fact they were buried in the back garden of the family home.
Last night, post-mortem examinations revealed that Ms Blake and her sons died as a result of head and neck injuries. Simpson-Kent is the prime suspect.
Yesterday, a picture proved for the first time that he had fled to Ghana – the country of his birth – just days after the domestic violence tip-off. The Met had publicly refused to admit Simpson-Kent had travelled to the country, but the photograph clearly showed him at Accra Airport on December 19.
Meanwhile, in more farcical scenes, police were dispatched to the home of Simpson-Kent’s exwife in France to look for him. Dominique Deblieux, 47, who was married to the fugitive for nine years, said: ‘This is a ridiculous waste of resources. He’s in Ghana, not hiding in my back garden.’
Yesterday, Ms Blake’s sister Ava demanded that Simpson-Kent be ‘brought back to justice’. She also revealed that the pair’s relationship had been over but that Ms Blake hadn’t been quite able to make the break from SimpsonKent.
Police discovered the partially decomposed bodies of Ms Blake and her sons buried in the garden of their home in Erith, south-east London – 18 days after first searching the property. The delay allowed Simpson-Kent, to travel to Ghana.
Detectives in Ghana said the 48year-old visited relatives in Accra – but left within hours. They suspect he is still in the country.