Residents said the couple were quiet and loving Photo: Brenda Brown
A husband and wife have been found dead in their home in Clapham in a suspected murder-suicide after she returned home from hospital recovering from a stroke.
Douglas Morton, 61, allegedly murdered his wife Carol French, 73, in the bedroom of the couple’s home in Stormont Road, near Clapham Common, then took his own life in the bathroom.
Police were alerted yesterday by neighbours concerned about the couple’s welfare. Scotland Yard said officers found the bodies just before 9am in the married couple’s terrace house.
Neighbours in the leafy street said they were “shocked” at the death of the “lovely couple”.
Police have launched a murder investigation but they are not looking for anyone else in connection to the incident. Ms French’s death is being treated as suspicious, while the death of Mr Morton is being treated as non-suspicious. Post-mortem examinations are due to take place soon and uniformed police officers will remain at the couple’s home today.
A neighbour who lives across the road said: “It is absolutely awful, very sad. I just noticed that they laid out a lovely lawn when they moved here. I looked out of the window and saw police there.”
Nausheen Ahmed, 18, a resident on Stormont Road, added: “It seems quite surprising, nothing like that ever happens here.”
Another resident, who declined to be named, said: “They are both retired, they seemed like a nice, normal couple. He was nice, he used to help his neighbours out and dropped a newspaper around to his next door neighbour’s house. Obviously we are all really shocked, it is just so sad. We hadn’t noticed them rowing.”
Rupert Rowland, 38, said: “They are people who have been here a very long time. It is very sad.”
Another neighbour who declined to be named said: “They were a lovely couple. I didn’t notice any arguments or anything, they seemed very nice. I think they were retired. I know she had recently got out of hospital. It is such a shock, very sad. They seemed lovely.”
A man who lives next door added: “It is a terrible shock, she had been in hospital. They were lovely, I never expected this would happen. I’m just in shock.”
The incident comes just weeks after a similar event took place in Lavender Sweep, just a few streets from Stormont Road. Another murder investigation was launched into the death of 21 year old chef Henry Stangroom. His flatmate, 30, has recently been arrested and accused of the murder.
Too many of these stories going around. Maybe it’s us that are to blame for not paying attention for the people around us. Sometimes someone being “lovely” and “quiet” can also mean being depressed and lonely.