An American serviceman and his British wife are among three people arrested for the double shooting of a father and son in Cambridgshire as part of a custody dispute, MailOnline can exclusively reveal.
The serviceman, 27, originally from Ohiois believed to be part of the United States Air Force stationed in the UK.
He is being held with his wife, 33, and her father, 66, on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder.
They are questioned about the shooting of Joshua Dunmore and his father Gary Dunmore – photographed by MailOnline today for the first time – late Wednesday night.
Joshua, 32, was found dead late Wednesday night in a house in an upmarket development in Bluntisham, after police received reports of gunfire. Half an hour later, his father Gary, 57, was also found dead in his flat in Sutton, about six miles away.
Cambridgeshire Police said yesterday they feared the couple had been shot dead over a custody battle.
Gary Dunmore was found dead in his flat in Sutton late Wednesday night
His son Josh Dunmore, 32, had just won a bitter custody battle over his son and should have celebrated, a devastated friend claimed.
The body of 32-year-old Josh Dunmore was found in the property with a gunshot wound
Police at the scene where Gary Dunmore was found dead. At 9.37pm, police were called by a person in Sutton, near Ely, who also reported gunshots
Forensic officers were called to the scene to investigate at The Row in Sutton
In a heartfelt tribute to the police cordon, one of Mr. Dunmore’s friends wrote: ‘To Josh. I can’t believe I’m writing this. This week was meant to be a celebration for you and your precious boy.
“I pray you can rest in peace knowing that you fought every day for Ryan. Everything you did was for him and he will know this forever.”
She added in remembrance, “I’ll remember to pick up my smile, like you used to tell me when I had a resting bitch face at the gym.” SIBA will never be the same without you and your witty ways.
“Keep on grooving their sassy boi. I love Harli.’
And a close friend told the Mail, “He was a very caring person.”
Cambridgeshire Police say there was a ‘domestic element’ to the murders on Wednesday night and feared the pair were victims of a ‘targeted attack’, with the custody battle being an ‘active line of enquiry’.
Yesterday, a 33-year-old woman, a 27-year-old man and a 66-year-old man were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder.
The younger pair were detained in a hotel near Cambridge in the early hours and the older man was detained during a dramatic capture operation on the M5 near Droitwich, Worcestershire, more than 100 miles away, where officers used a stinger device to white Peugeot. A shotgun was found.
Chief Superintendent Jon Hutchinson said: ‘At this stage we are not looking for other people in connection with the incident. Once we identified that family connection, it became quite clear why this attack had happened and this is clearly a targeted and isolated attack.”
He added: “One line of inquiry we are focusing on is that the people taken into custody are known to the deceased and have had recent contact with them.”
Devastated friends and family have laid flowers at the Meridian Close crime scene, Bluntisham, where Josh Dunmore was found dead
Police were called after reports of gunfire at a property in Meridian Close, Bluntisham (pictured) where Josh Dunmore was found dead
The two people arrested at the hotel were “from the area, but we are trying to find out where they have been for the past few days,” he said, adding that forensics were underway to determine if the same weapon was used at both locations, along with an investigation into whether the firearm found was legally owned.
Detective Inspector Mark Butler of the major crime unit added: “There is no greater risk to the general public.”
Yesterday there was a trampoline in the backyard of Josh’s redbrick house and a white van parked outside. Flowers were also left behind.
Neighbors were shocked by the two violent deaths in leafy streets where single-family homes are selling for more than £500,000.
Designer Sarah Lown, 38, who lives near the house split into two flats where twice-married contractor Gary Dunmore lived, heard three loud bangs just after 9 p.m. Wednesday. “I thought something had blown over,” she said. “I didn’t think anything crazy had happened. Then I heard two more.’
Gordon Murray, 62, who lives across the road said: ‘There was a lot of shouting. Then I saw armed police.’
Residents of Bluntisham were ordered by officers to stay indoors as a helicopter circled overhead.
Shop assistant Sharon Coulson, 58, said the village was ‘a nice place to live, nice country walks, friendly, everyone says hello’.
Det Insp Butler said: “There will be an increased police presence in the affected areas today and officers and crime operatives will be on the scene.”
Post-mortem examinations will take place in the coming days.