Man bludgeoned wife and kids to death

A man is believed to have bludgeoned his wife and four children to death in their £250,000 home before killing himself.

A man is believed to have bludgeoned his wife and four children to death in their £250,000 home before killing himself.

Police officers found the six bodies in the house in an affluent suburb of Barry, South Wales, last night after friends and family raised concerns that they had not been seen for 11 days.

The family were named as Catherine and Robert Mochrie and their four children, James, 18, Sian, 16, Luke 14, and 10-year-old Bethan.

Today, as officers who made the grim discovery were offered counselling, stunned friends of the children visited the house to pay tribute.

Three of Sian's friends, Rachel Ford, Claire Harries and Laura Currie, all 16, were crying and holding hands as they visited the scene.

Police said that five of the bodies in the house had been subjected to blunt force injuries and the sixth, only identified as a man, was an apparent suicide.

Detectives refused to comment on suggestions that Mr Mochrie, who was in the hotel business, killed his family then himself.

Detective Superintendent Kevin O'Neill, who is in charge of the investigation, told reporters at the scene: "There are indications of violence.

"Family and friends were concerned because they had not seen the family for some time. After initial investigations we gained entry and found a horrific scene.

"It was by all accounts a dreadful scene and we are offering counselling to officers."

He added that the bodies were found in a number of different places in the house.

The family had lived at the house for around 18 years