UK:British police said yesterday they were following a "strong line of inquiry" after a mother and her two teenage children were found bludgeoned to death at their home in Manchester on Thursday night.
Detectives refused to say how long the bodies had been in the house or to name the three, who had serious head injuries. But neighbours identified them as Beverley Samuels (35) and her children Fred (13) and Kesha (18), who appeared on a television talent show in 2004 and had just finished her A-levels.
Police cordoned off the house, in the Fallowfield district, and erected a tent outside. They also brought in a mobile incident room as forensic science teams moved in to examine the scene.
"They were a lovely family, a well-established family," said a neighbour. "They had been in the area for about 15 years."
Family friend Janet Pelling, a support worker at a hospital in Manchester, said Mrs Samuels had separated from her husband, Fred, many years ago.
"Fred is the father of both the children, but they split up when the kids were very young and Beverley moved to Thelwall Avenue on her own," she said. "She never went back with him, but he always played a big part in the children's lives."
Mrs Samuels was a nurse and her son, who had learning problems, attended a special school in nearby Trafford.
Kesha, who hoped to study law at Manchester University, appeared on Young Stars in Their Eyes on ITV as singer Toni Braxton when she was 15. - (Guardian service)