My son was murdered by crossbow killer Kyle Clifford’s brother when he was solely 18… I felt John Hunt’s ache – they’re EVIL males
They are two fathers who have never met but who are united by a horrifying common bond: they have both seen their families destroyed by two murderous brothers.
BBC commentator John Hunt told this week of the devastation he has suffered after Kyle Clifford, the boyfriend dumped by his daughter Louise, avenged himself by brutally killing her, her sister Hannah and their mother Carol.
As he plotted his killing spree, Clifford had phoned his brother to tell him he purchased the crossbow he went on to use – which was even more sickening because Bradley Clifford was taking the call from prison where he is serving a life sentence for murder.
Now the father of Soban Khan, the other, less well-known victim of the homicidal Clifford brothers, has spoken for the first time of his revulsion at the pair.
Najam Khan, whose only son was just 18 when he was brutally murdered by Bradley Clifford, told MailOnline: ‘The Clifford brothers are evil men who the public will need protecting from forever.’
Mr Khan, 49, also spoke of his empathy for Mr Hunt and his only surviving daughter, Amy, saying: ‘Our whole family were very, very upset by this. We hate these brothers over what happened.
‘My son was innocent when he was murdered and now another three innocent people have been murdered too. A family – two sisters and a mother – have been murdered.’
In a victim impact statement so harrowing that it upset even seasoned court workers, Mr Hunt on Monday had pointedly blamed the Clifford family for failing to warn the police what crazed Kyle was polling to do.
Najam Khan, father of Soban Khan, who was brutally murdered by Bradley Clifford, brother of convicted triple killer Kyle Clifford
Najam was just 18 when a random encounter with Bradley Clifford would cost him his life
‘Evil’ brothers: Bradley Clifford is serving life for the murder of 18-year-old Najam Khan, while Kyle Clifford raped and murdered his ex-girlfriend Louise, 25, and killed her mother, Carol, 61, and sister Hannah, 28
Addressing Kyle Clifford – despite him having been too cowardly to come to court for sentencing – he said: ‘Your family…will carry guilt forwards with them for the rest of their lives. They knew about the weapons, they knew.’
And choking back tears, Mr Khan said that he completely agreed with Mr Hunt’s assessment of Bradley Clifford’s culpability for what then happened to Louise, Hannah and Carol.
Mr Khan said: ‘He should have informed the police. But the brothers had criminal minds. They have proved that they are both evil with a violent mentality.’
Soban was a clean cut teenager who was about to embark on a university career when a random encounter with Bradley would cost him his life.
The older Clifford brother, a plumber, had bought himself a flashy car, a Ford Mustang, of which he was fiercely proud – and he was driving it outside a bar in Enfield when he passed a scooter.
Clifford’s subsequent Old Bailey trial would hear that Soban had provoked Bradley by throwing a bottle at the car he was fiercely proud of – though Mr Khan is adamant that this never happened and that there was not even this minimal provocation to justify what he then did.
But what is beyond dispute is what Bradley Clifford did after the vehicles passed each other: in what was later described as ’20 seconds of sheer madness’ he roared after the moped on which Soban was riding pillion, ramming it from behind.
The force of the collision threw both Soban and the scooter’s driver, his friend Jashua Francis, 19 metres into the air and onto the tarmac.
Mr Khan said of the brothers: ‘They have proved they are both evil with a violent mentality’
Mr Khan said Soban’s mother had collapsed when she learned of Soban’s brutal death while he had suffered three separate heart attacks brought on by the devastation of their loss
Kyle Clifford shared his decision to buy a crossbow with his imprisoned murderer brother. Pictured: The crossbow used in the horrific murders of Louise and Hannah
Kyle Clifford used a butcher’s knife to kill his former girlfriend’s mother, Carol. Pictured: The weapon’s packaging
He then dashed over to Mr Khan’s motionless body – he was already dying – and started attacking him with his fists and feet as he lay dying.
Soban’s father, speaking exclusively to MailOnline at the family’s north London home, said the horror of the Hunt murders had reignited the Khan family’s trauma.
He said: ‘We saw the news about these three women being murdered and we were very upset when we found out that he was the brother of the man who killed my own son.’
Mr Khan said his family had come under renewed stress when Soban’s name was mentioned in connection with the crossbow murders as having been killed by Bradley Clifford, the brother of Kyle Clifford.
He went on: ‘I was off work for a few days after these murders because they brought back our memories too.
‘I was in the Old Bailey and I heard the whole proceedings and the case about the death of my son.
‘He was very innocent, he was very young. He had just finished school and was expecting to start university in a few weeks.
‘He had finished his A-levels and had got a work experience placement with the Barclays Bank.
John Hunt is pictured with his wife Carol, who was killed alongside two of their two daughters
Louise (left), Hannah (centre) and Carol (right) were murdered in their home in Bushey, Hertfordshire, last July
Brave Hannah Hunt called 999 during the attacks and was still alive when police arrived at the home in Bushey, but later died from her wounds
‘He was a very innocent boy. He was good at sports, football and rugby. He was very popular at school as well. He had arranged work experience at a bank and he wanted to start his own business.’
Mr Khan gave some insight into the experience of trying to process the loss of a child.
He said Soban’s mother had collapsed when she learned of Soban’s brutal death while he had suffered three separate heart attacks brought on by the devastation of their loss.
‘My wife was very mentally upset and was taken to hospital,’ he recalled. ‘She had been working for a company as a designer, but she first reduced her hours and eventually she left her job altogether.
‘Now she just goes to the graveyard and sits there and prays for him.
‘It has been very hard because we had only one son, and he was very bright and a very good boy.
He will always remain in our hearts and we will never forget him.’
He said John Hunt’s tragedy was also in his thoughts and not of his family.
‘I saw what he said as a father and husband after the case and he is very upset and he has been left alone,’ Mr Khan told us. ‘What is the rest of his life going to be like? I think there will be a lot of pain.’
This was something Mr Hunt himself alluded to in that moving impact statement, saying to Kyle: ‘And what about me? The impact of what you have done will be taken to my grave but on the way there, I want you to know that I stand strong before you today.
As you are consigned to a fate far greater than death, I can draw on the love and strength that I still feel from the girls in every moment of every day.
Kyle Clifford was given a whole life tariff and his son’s murderer must remain behind bars for at least 23 years.
But Mr Khan said that Bradley Clifford had started pleading for his freedom almost as soon as he was jailed, saying police notified him that the killer was trying to appeal to get early release from prison.
But Mr. Khan added: ‘How can we speak of this? We are still very upset and we would not feel safe if he was released. We have refused his application.
‘After just one year he wanted to come out, and I said ‘no, this is not possible’.
‘I will request the police to keep an eye on (the brothers) forever and give them a lesson.’
Court artist sketch of BBC racing commentator Mr Hunt giving his victim impact statement
Both brothers shared an interest in dangerous weapons and the crossbow was later used to murder sisters Louise, 25, and Hannah, 28, in a horrific attack that lasted four hours.
Their mother 61-year-old Carol Hunt was slain with a ten-inch knife.
Kyle Clifford shared his decision to buy a crossbow with his imprisoned murderer brother, and his ex-girlfriend Louise had said, among her reasons for dumping him, was the fact that he did not find the killing of Soban as ‘horrendous’ and continued to visit his brother in jail.
Kyle spoke to his brother in jail about buying a crossbow because they shared interest in dangerous weapons, although there is no evidence Bradley egged him on to carry out the attacks.
Both the crossbow, which fired six bolts, and the knife were bought online shortly afterwards.
On the morning of the murders, Clifford, one of four children from Enfield, north London, went to a garden centre with his family just as if it was any other day.
His mother, who was born in Malta, and his retired heating engineer father are well liked in the area.
He also received a message from his sister Sian. The conversation that ensued, which was disclosed in court but not reported, is chilling with hindsight.
John Hunt (left) pictured with his Carol (right), Amy (second left) and Louise (second right)
Clifford was asked: ‘Why are you taking your crossbow out? What are you playing at? It’s illegal.’
He brushed off her concerns and replied: ‘I’m at Zack’s. lol [laugh out loud]. Chill. Shooting in back garden. Chill.’
She then told him: ‘Hmm, OK. Well, don’t take it out. Put it in the boot.’
He reassures her, saying: ‘Yeah, it’s wrapped up in the boot. DW [don’t worry]’.
But at 1.07pm, he left Enfield and began the 40-minute drive to Bushey where he would kill.
Louise Hunt acknowledged that Clifford’s family had a history of violence in a note before she was killed.
She made a note to herself on her phone setting out the ‘reasons why she should not be sad about ending the relationship’ with Clifford, the court heard.
Jurors were told that the note, titled ‘When you’re sad, look!’, included that his family was a ‘mess’, his ‘road rage’ and his use of ‘belittling’ language.
The note included reference to his brother, and that Clifford did not find what he did ‘horrendous’ and still saw him every other week.
Prosecutor Ms Morgan said the list also included how Clifford believed he had a higher IQ than Louise’s family and that he found his father’s and his brother’s violence ‘funny’.
The trial at the Old Bailey heard how Bradley, in an ‘intense range’, proceeded to attack Mr Khan as he lay helplessly on the street, punching him ferociously nine times.
Before the attack, Bradley told his girlfriend over WhatsApp that he would put a knife down the throats and ‘rain hell’ on anyone who interfered with his Ford Mustang – something the judge said he regarded as a ‘status symbol which he took pride in’.
Bradley was handed a life sentence with a minimum term of 23 years for murdering Mr Khan.
He was also sentenced to seven years for the attack on Mr Francis, to run concurrently.
