SLEEPOVER MASSACRE
Boy of 13, his sister, 11, and their friend found dead with mum
THE father of two children killed alongside their mother and a schoolfriend broke down at the scene yesterday, saying: ‘I just want to kiss my babies.’
Terri Harris, 35, was found dead at her home with son John Paul Bennett, 13, daughter Lacey Bennett, 11, and Lacey’s best friend Connie Gent, also 11, who had been staying over for a sleepover.
Jason Bennett, father of John Paul and Lacey, collapsed in tears as he laid flowers at the police cordon. He said: ‘I’m broken, I just want to kiss my babies.’
He left flowers at the scene with a message to his daughter which said: ‘To Lacey, my TikTok Queen. Lost without you. Look after your big brother and don’t wind him up.
‘Soon I will be there to kiss you, hold you tight and make it all better.’
A message to his son read: ‘To John, my beautiful son, keep your kind heart shining while the angels are looking after you for me.’
Mr Bennett, who was separated from Miss Harris, added on Facebook: ‘I need my babies back. Life will never be the same. My angels. Won’t be long till I’m touching your cheeks, holding you close and kissing your beautiful faces. Only you two can fix me.’
Officers arrested a 31-year-old man on suspicion of murder at the semi-detached house in Killamarsh, Derbyshire, after being alerted on Sunday morning.
The suspect was known to the victims and remained in custody last night, police said. Nobody else is being sought in connection with the deaths and Derbyshire Constabulary said it did not have any prior contact with those involved in the incident.
Neighbours said the family had only recently moved in.
On social media, Connie’s heartbroken father Charlie Gent said he was ‘helpless to protect her’ and urged other parents to ‘spend as much time with your kids as you possibly can’.
He wrote: ‘My little girl has gone, I can’t even put into words or even [know] how to feel or react right now. I have to live with the fact I was helpless to protect her as I always promised and she’s gone. Fly safe baby girl, I love you with all my heart and always will. Going to miss you like crazy.’
Lacey and John Paul’s grandparents, Debbie and Trevor Bennett, said they were ‘beautiful, wellmannered kids’.
They added: ‘Terri was a beautiful and wonderful mother. Their dad was on holiday in Devon. He had to drive home knowing he has lost his children. I don’t know how he’s going to come through this.’
All three children attended Outwood Academy City school in Sheffield, which closed yesterday following the murders. Pupils gathered at nearby Richmond Park to release hundreds of coloured balloons in tribute to their lost friends.
Police were called to the house at 7.26am on Sunday following concerns for the safety of a man, said Derbyshire’s Chief Constable Rachel Swann.
In a statement at the scene yesterday, she urged potential witnesses to come forward.
She said: ‘While understandably worrying and upsetting, this is believed to be an isolated incident. A team of detectives have been working through the night to understand the circumstances that led to their deaths.’
Four forensics tents could be seen at the scene yesterday as detectives collected evidence.
Last night Keith Newton-Smith, 76, a former next-door neighbour of John Paul and Lacey, said: ‘They were a lovely family that loved animals.’ His partner, Margaret Wright, 81, added: ‘Jason will be heartbroken. He idolised them.’
Another friend in Woodhouse, South Yorkshire, where the family lived previously, said Miss Harris ‘lived for her kids’.
According to social media profiles, Miss Harris was a healthcare assistant at a nursing home and Mr Bennett worked at Royal Mail. The tragedy comes five months after Ricky Collins, 31, was stabbed to death in Killamarsh in an unconnected incident.
‘I just want to kiss my babies’