Arthur Simpson-Kent pleads guilty to murdering wife, two sons

The partner of former EastEnders actress Sian Blake has admitted murdering her and their two children.

Ms Blake, 43, Zachary, eight, and Amon, four, were found at the family home in Erith, London, on January 5after being reported missing on December 16.

Arthur Simpson-Kent, 48, entered guilty pleas before Mr Justice Singh at the Old Bailey via video link from Belmarsh prison.

Outside court, Ms Blake's sister Ava said the family were "really relieved".

Simpson-Kent, a hairdresser, was remanded in custody ahead of a three-day sentencing hearing, starting on 4 October.

He was arrested at Heathrow Airport in February after being extradited from Ghana.

Ms Blake and her sons died from neck and head injuries, a post-mortem examination found.

Their bodies were found buried in the garden of the family home by police after Simpson-Kent had left.

Days after the bodies were found, he was arrested on a beach in Ghana by local police. 

The arrest came after locals recognised him from a photo shared on social media and tipped off the authorities

Det Ch Insp Graeme Gwyn said: "Arthur Simpson-Kent has never given a reason as to why he killed Sian, Zachary and Amon in the way that he did. 

"Sian's close-knit family are devastated by the loss of their much loved sister, daughter and cousin. 

"The deaths of Zachary and Amon have compounded their grief and they have lost two entire generations of their family to a violent and completely senseless act of murder at the hands of Simpson-Kent."

Ms Blake played Frankie Pierre in 56 episodes of EastEnders between 1996 and 1997 and had been living with motor neurone disease before she died.

The EastEnders actor appeared in the 1998 film Siberia and TV movie May 33rd in 2004 under her stage name Syan Blake, according to her profile on IMDB.

The Met has referred the case to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) over its handling of the investigation.

A serious case review is also under way.

Credit: BBC