Gwent response to fire murders criticised

The police response prior to a triple murder fell well short of the standard expected, while social workers did not appreciate there was a case of sexual exploitation and domestic abuse involved in the build up to the incident, three separate reports have concluded.

Kim Buckley, her daughter Kayleigh and granddaughter Kimberley died during a blaze at their home in Cwmbran in September 2012. In July 2013, Carl Mills, Kayleigh Buckley’s boyfriend, was jailed for 35 years for their murders.

A Serious Case Review (SCR), a Domestic Homicide Review (DHR) and the conclusion of an Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) investigation all identified a number of failings in how the case was handled.

The IPCC found that in August 2012 Kim Buckley attended Cwmbran police station to report criminal damage at her home and alleged that Mills was responsible. A police constable took a statement and, along with a temporary police sergeant, took responsibility for dealing with the allegation.

The investigation found that the allegation of criminal damage was not acted upon and that potential lines of inquiry were not followed. It added that the constable did not identify, or act on, Mills’ escalating behaviour, including text messages threatening harm and theft.

The SCR found that in 2010 Mills began to groom Kayleigh Buckley, then 15, over Facebook before moving from Bolton to Torfaen to pursue a sexual relationship with her.

It said Kim Buckley became concerned about her daughter’s relationship with an older man and phoned agencies, including the police, on 19 different occasions seeking help. Kayleigh Buckley’s teachers also expressed concerns that she was being sexually exploited, but following checks police found “no trace” of any criminal convictions on Mills’ record.

However, it was later discovered that Mills had spent time in prison, had a significant history of violence and had committed 45 acts of violence, including setting fire to his mother’s bed believing she was in it and threatening her with knives.

The SCR said: “Risks were not fully understood because information about Mills’ background was not sufficiently accessed and considered.

“No enquiries were made of agencies in Bolton and elsewhere that had previously had involvement with Mills.”

The DHR also expressed concerns over Mills’ history. It found that the 28-year-old’s predatory, controlling and abusive behaviour was not recognised and addressed by the agencies as sexual exploitation and domestic abuse.

It concluded that arrangements within Gwent Police for accessing information held by other forces were “inadequate”.

IPCC Commissioner for Wales Jan Williams said: “We will never be able to say whether the tragic deaths could have been prevented if different actions had been taken. However, what is clear from our investigation is that the level of service provided by police to the family in response to their allegation of criminal damage fell well below the standard they should have expected.”

Gwent Police accepted the IPCC’s conclusions and says it is committed to evaluating the systematic failings and implementing necessary improvements.

Assistant Chief Constable Lorraine Bottomley said the priority is to learn from what went wrong to minimise the chances of it reoccurring.