Man charged with murder of husband and wife found dead in Essex home
Luke D’Wit, 33, has been charged with two counts of murder after Stephen Baxter, 61, and Carol Baxter, 64, were found dead on Easter Sunday.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A man has been charged with the murder of a husband and wife who were found dead in Essex on Easter Sunday.
Luke D’Wit, 33, has been charged with two counts of murder after Stephen Baxter, 61, and Carol Baxter, 64, were found dead at a home in Victory Road, on Mersea Island, near Colchester, at about 1.30pm on April 9, Essex Police said.
Officers were called by the ambulance service to concerns for the welfare of two people and found the married couple had died.
At that stage, their deaths were being treated as unexpected and not suspicious and officers were working to establish the circumstances around their deaths, the force said.
This is a significant development in our investigation as we piece together the circumstances around the deaths of Carol and Stephen.
But as a result of an investigation and toxicology analysis, two men and a woman were arrested on Thursday.
A woman and a man have been released on bail.
D’Wit, of Churchfields, West Mersea, Colchester, was charged with two counts of murder, one count of possession of a Class A drug, and one count of theft.
He is due to appear at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on Saturday.
The couple were directors of Cazsplash, a firm which produces shower mats and bathroom accessories.
Detective Inspector Lydia George, who is leading the investigation, said: “This is a significant development in our investigation as we piece together the circumstances around the deaths of Carol and Stephen.
“I would like to thank everyone who has come forward to speak to us throughout this complex investigation.”
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.