The body of a teenage babysitter who was stabbed to death in her sister’s home as she looked after her young niece and nephew was found by her mother, police said yesterday.
We have a team of detectives looking at a number of lines of in quiry to establish exactly what happened
Chatherine Wynter, 19, also known as Katie, was staying at the house on Boxing Day night while the children’s mother was away.
Miss Wynter’s mother found her body when she called at the address in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, at 8 a.m. the next day, Detective Superintendent Michael Hanlon said.
He said the children, aged three and four, were still in the house but had not been injured.
Specially-trained officers are interviewing them and do not yet know how much they saw or heard of what happened to their aunt, who regularly babysat as a favour to her sister.
The interviewing process is expected to take some time because of their young age. “Obviously the most important issue is the children’s welfare,” Mr Hanlon said.
An 18-year-old man from Borehamwood, and a 26-year-old man from Islington, north London, who were arrested yesterday, remain in custody.
Both were known to Miss Wynter – and her sister – but were not direct relatives. Mr Hanlon said police would not give any further details about their relationship, but they would come out “in due course”.
Miss Wynter’s family released a brief statement through police earlier.
It said: “Katie was a quiet girl who enjoyed life.
“She was a loving auntie to her niece and nephew, who she was looking after on Boxing Day.
“We would ask not to be contacted by members of the media and that our privacy is respected to allow us to grieve together as a family.”
Officers believe the teenager was attacked at some point between 7 p.m. on Boxing Day and 8 a.m. yesterday, when they were called to the mid-terrace property in Beech Drive.
A post-mortem examination confirmed that Miss Wynter, who also went by the surname Briscoe and lived elsewhere in Borehamwood, died as a result of stab injuries.
Mr Hanlon said no weapon has been found but a number of searches were taking place.
He said: “Firstly, our thoughts are with the victim’s family.
“As you can imagine, this is an extremely traumatic time and they are being supported by specialist family liaison officers.
“We have a team of detectives currently working on the case who are looking at a number of lines of inquiry to establish exactly what happened. However, I would like to appeal to the communities of Borehamwood to help us.”
Police are investigating whether there were any signs of a break-in at the house where Miss Wynter was found, but said she and the children were the only people staying there on the night.
Floral tributes were left near the scene. One read: “To darling Katy. RIP angel. We will miss you so much.” Neighbours described the death as a “tragedy”.
It is not known where Miss Wynter’s sister went on Monday night, but police said she was staying locally.