Killamarsh deaths: Man remanded in custody charged with murders of mother and three children

A 31-year-old man has been remanded in custody charged with four counts of murder after a mother and three children were found dead in a house near Sheffield.

Damien Bendall, 31, appeared at Southern Derbyshire Magistrates’ Court in Derby by video-link to the county’s Ripley police headquarters.

The bodies of John Paul Bennett, 13, Lacey Bennett, 11, their mother Terri Harris, 35, and Lacey’s friend Connie Gent, 11, were discovered at a property in Chandos Crescent, Killamarsh, on Sunday morning.

Derbyshire Constabulary said the four bodies were found after police responded to a call about concerns for the safety of a man at the address at 7.26am.

Bendall, who appeared in the video-link sitting on a chair and wearing a grey sweater and jogging bottoms, spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth, and his address as Chandos Crescent.

Deputy District Judge Gary Garland ordered Bendall to appear at Derby Crown Court on Friday.

The charges against Bendall allege that he murdered all four victims on a day between Friday September 17 and Monday September 20.