Melton Mowbray policeman kills his wife and child after losing job

A former police inspector killed his wife and six-year-old daughter and seriously injured his two other children in a frenzied attack before killing himself after being sacked last week for misusing his force computer systems.

Detectives investigating Thursday's killings at the semi-detached home believe Tobias Day's attack on his family was precipitated by his dismissal by Leicestershire police.

Day, 37, is believed to have stabbed his wife Samantha, 38, a nursery teacher, and youngest daughter Genevieve, and inflicted serious injuries on his daughter Kimberley, 15, and son Adam,13, before taking his own life. Police have begun a murder inquiry but are not looking for anyone else in connection with the deaths.

As residents in the residential street in Melton Mowbray spoke of their shock, the two surviving children were said to be in serious but stable conditions at the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham.

Leicestershire police said Day had been dismissed following a misconduct hearing over "matters concerning honesty and integrity" and concerning the misuse of the force computer systems.

Officers first answered a 999 call at 4.20pm over reports the elder daughter, Kimberley, had been injured. It is understood she fled the family home in Robin Crescent and ran to nearby Swallowdale primary school where emergency services were summoned.

She was taken to hospital and investigation officers forced their way into the family's home. It was later confirmed a man, woman and child had died.

Paramedics said there were two emergency calls an hour apart, the first from the school at 4.20pm reporting "an assault" and the second received direct from Leicestershire police at 5.24pm to Robin Crescent

Day, who had been the local policing commander for Beaumont Leys local policing unit (LPU) had been decorated for bravery. Neighbours described him as a fitness fanatic who was also an amateur football referee and who had run the London Marathon in memory of a colleague stabbed to death by her boyfriend.

Nigel Keep, who runs the nearby Nigel's Coffee Shop where Day was a customer, said he was "very depressed" at losing his job, and said he only had enough savings for "a couple of months" when he last saw him on Saturday.

"He had just left the police after 16 years' service," said Keep, who said it had been "a messy sacking". He added: "He did not see it coming and he just didn't know what to do."

Keep described Day as "a nice character" who organised a lot of things in the community. Day's wife had broken her ankle a few months ago and he would "wheel her around everywhere". The couple's daughters both attended classes at the Trevonne Stage School, said Keep, and Day would "nip across the road to where Trevonne rehearse to change Genevieve's dance shoes between tap and ballet lessons and do up the laces for her". Both girls had been appearing in Mother Goose at Melton Theatre this week.

Stuart Williams, principal at Catmose College in Oakham where Kimberley and Adam are pupils, said the school was "united in a deep state of utter shock". Genevieve is thought to have been a pupil at Saint Francis Catholic primary school in Melton.

The Early Years Nursery in Melton Mowbray, where Day's wife worked, was closed as a mark for respect "for a truly loved and wonderful person who will be sadly missed". One distraught parent said the nursery teacher had been preparing the nativity play due to take place next Friday. "Sam was the warmest person you could ever meet. She was so involved and was getting the children so excited about the nativity play."