U.K. Police Searching for Man Suspected of Killing 3 Women With Crossbow

The authorities in England were hunting on Wednesday for a man who was suspected of killing three women the previous night with a crossbow and possibly other weapons in a small, leafy town east of London, according to Hertfordshire Police.

The police said they arrived at the scene just before 7 p.m. local time on Tuesday and found three women with serious injuries. The victims, aged 25, 28 and 61, died shortly afterward at the scene.

The BBC reported that the victims were the wife and two daughters of one of its horse-racing commentators. “As we’ve just reported, the three women killed in a crossbow attack in Bushey, near Watford, are Carol Hunt, the wife of the BBC commentator John Hunt, and two of their daughters,” the broadcaster wrote.

The police were searching for Kyle Clifford, 26, they said, warning people that “he may be in possession of a crossbow, do not approach.” It was not immediately clear on Wednesday what the relation was between Mr. Clifford and the three women.

The police said Mr. Clifford could be in Bushey, the town where the crime happened, or in nearby North London. They had deployed armed officers and specialized search teams across both areas.

“Our overarching objective today is to protect public safety and to locate Kyle Clifford” Chief Superintendent Jon Simpson of Hertfordshire Police said during a news conference, adding that the police believed the murders were a “targeted incident.”

Mr. Simpson said that the man had probably used a crossbow in the killings, but that other weapons might also have been used.

Mr. Simpson also addressed Mr. Clifford directly during the news conference: “Kyle, if you are seeing or hearing this, please make contact with the police.”

For the residents of the quiet corner of England, the killings came as a big shock. A local councilman, Laurence Brass, told the BBC that it was a traumatizing event. “The most dramatic thing that has ever happened here is a bit of illegal fly-tipping,” he said. “And suddenly we are told there are three murders.”