A teenager who appeared on the junior version of Stars in Their Eyes has been found bludgeoned to death with her mother and younger brother.
Police discovered the bodies of Beverley Samuels, 35, a nurse, her daughter Kesha Wizzart, 18, and son Fred, 13, at their home in a cul-de-sac in Fallowfield, Manchester, on Thursday evening. They all had head injuries.
Police last night named a 32-year-old suspect whom they are hunting in connection with what they labelled the “horrific murders”. Pierre Williams, who neighbours said was the mother’s boyfriend, was described as about 5ft 8in (1.72m) and of medium build. Mr Williams, who grew up in Moss Side, Manchester, but lived in Birmingham more recently, has a tattoo on his right arm which says “cream” and more tattoos on his chest.
Superintendent Peter Savill said: “Pierre was a friend of the mother. He was a friend she had not seen until quite recently.”
Kesha, who was hoping to study law at the University of Manchester, recently completed her A levels at Parrs Wood Sixth-Form College in Didsbury. She appeared on the junior version of ITV’s Stars in Their Eyes in 2004, when she was 15, impersonating the American R&B singer Toni Braxton with the song Unbreak My Heart.
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Neighbours spoke of heart-rending scenes as members of the family, including Ms Samuels’s former husband, Fred Wizzart, 38, a sales manager, arrived to be informed of the deaths. Jamie Smyth, 21, a neighbour, said: “I saw Fred. He was pacing the square with his head in his hands. He looked devastated.”
The parents separated early in the children’s lives but, say friends, Mr Wizzart had been a loving father who paid close attention to their welfare.
Ms Samuels worked at Manchester Royal Infirmary. Her son, who was said to have had learning difficulties, attended St John Vianney School in Salford. He was well known in the neighbourhood for riding his bicycle with other children and offering a free bicycle repair service in his garden.
Kesha took ten GCSEs at Trinity Church of England High School, Hulme. She recently completed her A levels, leaving her free, as she put it on her entry on Facebook, the social networking website, to put her days as a “recluse” behind her.
Manchester Royal Infirmary said in a statement that Ms Samuels was “a very popular member of the team” who would be sadly missed.
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Greater Manchester Police said that the murders were not thought to be gang-related. They sought to reassure the community that they were not looking for a random killer. Mr Savill said: “We have got strong lines of inquiry which multiple officers have been drawn into to investigate. I can reassure the public that this does not represent a general threat to the wider community.
“We are absolutely determined to find the person responsible for these despicable murders.”
Police refused to comment on a report that there had been an argument outside the house. They would not comment on suggestions that the bodies were found in separate rooms or that they may have died at different times.