Gracie Spinks: Mother pays tribute to daughter killed in suspected murder suicide

‘My beautiful daughter Gracie taken away from me, her dad and brother and sister and everyone who loved and cared for her’

Gracie Spinks, 23, was found dead in a field in the Derbyshire village of Duckmanton (Facebook)

The mother of 23-year-old Gracie Spinks who was found fatally injured last week has posted a tribute to her daughter on social media, calling for an end to violence against women.

Alison Heaton posted her daughter’s photo to Facebook along with the message: “My beautiful daughter Gracie taken away from me, her dad and brother and sister and everyone who loved and cared for her.” Her post also included a broken heart and crying emoji.

The photo of Ms Spinks had an added pink frame that said: “Stop violence against women, justice for women.”

Ms Spinks’s father also added the frame to his Facebook profile photo.

Ms Spinks died in a paddock in Duckmanton, Derbyshire, at around 8.40am on Friday. At around 11am, the body of a man in his 30s – believed to be a former work colleague – was found nearby off Tom Lane in Duckmanton.

Derbyshire Constabulary said they were not looking for anyone else in connection with the incidents and believe the two deaths to be linked, suggesting a possible murder suicide.

The force said: “We appreciate that what has happened in Duckmanton today will have shocked and upset many people in the community, and officers will carry out extra patrols in the coming days.”

Derbyshire Constabulary also referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct over the case, although the reason for doing so remains unclear.

The IOPC said in a statement: “We can confirm we have received a referral from Derbyshire Police following the death of a woman in Duckmanton, Derbyshire on Friday 18 June.

“We will assess the referral and decide on our level of involvement, if any, in due course. Our thoughts remain with the woman’s family.”

Ms Spinks studied art and design at Chesterfield College and lived in Old Whittington. She worked as a packer at e-commerce firm Xbite and occasionally as a model for a London agency.

She was a keen horse rider who was described by friends and family as “horsey mad” and often took part in show jumping and dressage competitions with her horse, Paddy.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to assist Ms Sprinks’s family with costs associated with her funeral, and specifically costs related to taking care of Paddy. As of Monday afternoon, the page had raised more than £8,000.