Mother, 23, is murdered at home five months after giving birth
2 men arrested over horror
A YOUNG mother who had a baby just five months ago has been found murdered at home.
Jessica King, 23, pictured here with baby Esmay- Jean, was found dead on Sunday afternoon.
‘She was just a nice, normal mum,’ said shocked neighbour Rita Martin, 58, yesterday.
On Friday, Miss King had posted a sad- sounding message on her Facebook page saying: ‘I don’t want a perfect life. I want a happy life.’
It is not known whether the baby or her elder sister Evie- Joy, four, were at home when their mother died. The girls are now believed to be with relatives.
A murder inquiry was launched after the grim discovery in Halifax, West Yorkshire, and detectives later arrested two men aged 27 and 26 in Leeds on suspicion of murder. They had not been named last night.
Miss King, a customer services supervisor in a shop, had been in a long-term relationship with Jordon Thackray, 27, who recently started his own property maintenance business, but she listed herself as single on social media. Neighbours say the couple had separated.
Police officers were yesterday seen at the home of Mr Thackray’s parents.
West Yorkshire police revealed few details about how the young mother had been killed and said a post-mortem examination would be held to determine the cause of death.
Neighbour Mrs Martin, who lives opposite with her father, said Miss King had lived alone with the children since splitting with her boyfriend. She added: ‘Jess was such a nice girl. She had an older daughter who used to wave and say hello to my dad all the time. That’s how we got talking and I used to speak to her often. I just can’t take it in. The whole community has been saddened by what’s happened.’
Mrs Martin saw police arrive at the house in the suburb of Siddal on Sunday afternoon. ‘I saw the van and wondered what was going on and then I saw a woman who must have been Jess’s mother and she was just beside herself,’ she said. ‘It was heartbreaking to watch.
‘That’s when I knew something really bad had happened. Now two little girls are without their mother. She was just a normal 23-year-old – it’s too sad to think about.’
Another neighbour said the couple were a ‘good family’ and Mr Thackray seemed ‘pleasant and hard working’.
Miss King’s Facebook post on Friday had criticised the way people depicted their lives as ‘perfect’ on social media. Two weeks ago she had written: ‘What hurts is when you pour and pour your heart into a relationship and you get nothing in return.’
Detective Chief Inspector Jaz Khan, of West Yorkshire Police, confirmed that two men had been arrested in Leeds on suspicion of murder.
He added: ‘I am still very much appealing for anyone who may have information or have seen suspicious behaviour outside the address to come forward.’
Miss King’s family were too upset to comment yesterday.
‘She was a nice, normal mum’