- This story is developing, more to follow
An 18-year-old has been charged with the murders of a woman and two teenagers who were found dead at a flat in Luton on Friday, Bedfordshire Police said.
Nicholas Prosper, of Leabank, Luton, was arrested on Friday morning in Bramingham Road after police discovered three bodies at a flat in Leabank, off Wauluds Bank Drive, at around 5.30am.
The victims are believed to be Juliana Prosper, 48, Kyle Prosper, 16, and Giselle Prosper, 13, although formal identification has yet to take place.
Prosper was also charged with ‘a number of firearms offences’, police said.
Detective Superintendent Rob Hall, from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit, said the force’s thoughts were with the victims and their loved ones.
Police presence at block of flats in Luton, Bedfordshire, where three people where discovered dead on the morning of September 13 2024
The three casualties were found in the Leabank area of Luton – before an 18-year-old was arrested nearby
‘Although formal identification has yet to take place, next of kin of those who we believe to have died have been informed and are being supported by specialist officers,’ he said.
‘We would ask that their privacy is respected at this unimaginably difficult time.
‘Following the discovery of the three bodies yesterday, we immediately dispatched a number of officers to the scene. Shortly afterwards they arrested an 18-year-old man, who has now been charged with three counts of murder, as well as a number of firearms offences.
‘I’d like to praise all of the officers involved in this investigation so far, especially those who were first at the scene and were met with such awful circumstances, and those who have worked round the clock to establish the details surrounding these tragic deaths.’
Prosper has been remanded in custody ahead of an appearance at Luton Magistrates’ Court on Monday.
Neighbours previously described hearing loud ‘bangs’ which they feared were gun shots.
One resident, who asked not to be named, told MailOnline: ‘I thought I heard some bangs, at about quarter to six. But I thought it was car backfiring.
Police outside the high rise on Leabank, off Wauluds Bank Drive where the three people were found
A police car outside the property where the bodies were found as a man is being questioned
‘I didn’t realise until later that someone had been shot.’
Police were seen flying a drone over a section of the nearby River Lea, while a team of forensics officers established a large cordon around the grassy Waulud’s Bank.
There was a large police presence outside the 15-storey Leabank Tower where the incident took place, one of several large residential blocks in the area.
Another horrified neighbour – a male nurse who has lived in the area for 22 years, added: ‘Everyone gets on here. But there is an undercurrent of bad behaviour.
‘I’m shocked. To hear somebody had a gun – never.
‘I walk here late at night and never had a problem, never felt unsafe.’
More to follow.
