The terrifying ease with which the Mail bought deadly crossbows for less than £200… As triple killing suspect is arrested after mother and two daughters slaughtered with the weapon in their home

On Thursday, I ordered an EK Archery Blade+ compound crossbow that can fire an aluminium bolt at 350 feet per second, fast enough to rip through the torso of a deer – or a person.

I haven’t had any safety training, no one has checked my mental stability or asked why I want to buy this lethal weapon. 

The only requirements were that I was over 18 and had the wherewithal to pay the asking price of £229.95.

The ease with which I’ve placed my order is deeply disturbing in the wake of the horrific killings of Louise Hunt, 25, her sister Hannah, 28, and their mother Carol, 61 – all tied up before being apparently shot by crossbow at the family home in Bushey, Hertfordshire, on Tuesday.

The Blade+ has a draw weight – the amount of force needed to cock it and so an indication of its power – of 175lbs, the maximum allowed in many US states, and it comes with three 20-inch bolts.

I’ve also ordered an Anglo Arms OP 360 self-cocking crossbow, a steal at just £47.99. At 80lbs draw weight, it isn’t as powerful as the Blade+ but, as one chilling review says on springfields.co.uk, the site that sold it to me: ‘This thing packs a punch. It’s easy to use, easy to cock, easy to fire, easy to aim it, easy to put up your jacket, easy to shoot someone.’

For its part, Springfields says: ‘We are a responsible retailer, which is why we work closely with the NPCC (National Police Chiefs’ Council), Met Police, Home Office and Trading Standards and are part of their working group for new legislation.’

These bows are two of five that the Mail was able to buy perfectly legally after the tragedy that befell the family of BBC racing commentator John Hunt.

None of the shops and websites we bought from asked if we had criminal records or bad intentions, though one salesman warned a reporter ‘not to do anything stupid’ with the bow.

Under the Crossbows Act 1987, it is legal to buy and sell crossbows, but under-18s may neither buy nor own one. It is also illegal for anyone under 21 to fire one without supervision.

The law additionally stipulates that crossbows cannot be used in a public or a private space without permission.

And anyone selling a crossbow to a minor could face up to six months in prison, while possessing the weapon in public could attract a sentence of up to four years in jail.

These regulations apply to any crossbow with a draw weight of 3lb or more – almost 60 times less powerful than my Blade+.

As well as the two crossbows mentioned, which were purchased online from Springfields and Tactical Archery, the Mail bought crossbows from three shops across England.

Disturbingly, at Merlin Archery in County Durham, where we bought a Jag 2 Pro crossbow for £169.59, our reporter was asked whether he was over 18, but not asked to prove it. 

Manager Alan Kirkup later said the 26-year-old reporter looked ‘definitely over 18′ and explained they keep a record of customers’ details ‘if we suspect them of misusing a crossbow’.

‘We have obeyed every law of the land, we haven’t mis-sold anything and have done everything correctly,’ he said.

A lethal Jag 1 Deluxe package with an extra set of 20 bolts and a laser sight was on sale at Bow Sports Archery in Wolverhampton, for £145.

Staff made the requisite age checks, but in fewer than 10 minutes, the Mail had left the store with a lethal weapon.

Only at Phoenix Archery in Burnley was the shopkeeper reluctant to sell, saying the reporter needed to pass a ‘beginner’s course’ beforehand. 

Minutes later, however, the vendor relented, checked the reporter’s age, sold the crossbow and said: ‘Don’t do anything stupid with it because you’ll get me into trouble.’

Gemma Vine is solicitor for Laura Sugden, whose 30-year-old husband Shane Gilmer died after being shot with a crossbow by their neighbour Anthony Lawrence in 2018 in East Yorkshire.

Laura, who was pregnant, was also shot but survived. Ms Vine said: ‘Sadly, I’m not surprised that you were able to buy these lethal weapons – but the truth is that you shouldn’t be able to.

‘During Shane’s inquest, we heard a lot of evidence about the horrendous, catastrophic injuries these weapons can cause.

‘We also heard that the public isn’t being protected from them. There should be no reason why a person would ever need a crossbow outside of genuine sport or historical re-enactment, and even then they should be licensed.’

There have been a number of high profile murders and incidents involving crossbows in recent years. 

In 2018, Sana Muhammad, 35, also pregnant, was shot in her east London home with a crossbow by her ex-husband Ramanodge Unmathallegadoo. She died but the baby survived.

Crossbows were once unheard of as weapons of crime but their use seems to be on the rise – and no one is safe from them.

On Christmas Day 2021, Jaswant Singh Chail, 21, from Southampton, was arrested after breaking into Windsor Castle with a loaded bow intending to kill Queen Elizabeth.

Thankfully, he was caught and jailed for nine years.

Following that incident, Home Secretary Priti Patel commissioned a review into the use of crossbows and whether they should be subject to tighter restrictions. 

That review ended in April and a decision on whether to take further action will be down to the new Labour government.

This week, the Home Office launched an eight-week ‘call to evidence’ consultation after security minister Dan Jarvis said the department was treating the threat of crossbows as ‘a real priority’.

In a statement in February, the Home Office pointed out that homicides by crossbow are rare – with fewer than ten between 2011 and 2021.

But it added that ‘it is clear that when used as a weapon, crossbows do pose a risk and the Government is determined to ensure any needed safeguards are in place to keep the public safe’.