Essex police face investigation following double murder

Mother and two-year-old daughter shot dead in Braintree
Police knew of incidents involving suspect and victim
Braintree shooting
Police outside a house in Braintree, Essex, after a woman and child were found dead following the shooting. Photograph: Yui Mok/PA

A man suspected of shooting dead a mother and her toddler daughter in Essex had been known to police for two years.

As detectives launched a double murder inquiry, it emerged that a "number of incidents" involving the 50-year-old suspect and the mother, Christine Chambers, 38, had been referred to Essex police.

The bodies of Chambers and her two-year-old daughter, Shania, were found after police were called to a firearms incident in Braintree at 3am. Neighbours said officers spent almost two hours negotiating with the man through the letter box.

The alarm was raised by another daughter, aged 10, who managed to escape through a back window and fled to a nearby house.

The man, named locally as David Oakes and said to be Shania's father, was under police guard in hospital undergoing treatment for shotgun injuries not thought to be life-threatening. He had not yet been arrested on Monday afternoon.

Police are not looking for anyone else in connection with the deaths. A shotgun was recovered from the scene.

It is understood the man and Chambers were involved in a custody dispute and due to attend a family proceedings hearing at Chelmsford county court yesterday.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission is investigating the incident. Assistant Chief Constable Gary Beautridge, head of Kent and Essex serious crime directorate, said: "There had been a number of incidents where contact between the man in custody and Chrissie Chambers had been referred to Essex police in the last two years."

He added there would be a "full and fundamental review of the circumstances surrounding this contact in order to ensure there is total transparency".

He said the 10-year-old girl who escaped was Chambers's daughter, who managed to alert relatives. She had acted in "an extremely brave manner in what must have been very difficult and traumatic circumstances for her".

Neighbours of the victims expressed concerns that police could have prevented the deaths. One shouted at officers at the scene: "You knew this was going to happen." Another, who declined to be named, said: "She had called the police before on several occasions and there had been a lot of problems in the past.

"Like everybody, she had her ups and down and we knew there were problems. We knew she was worried about what might happen to her and it seemed she was living in fear."

Another neighbour, Tony Challis, said police arrived at the house at 3am and spent around two hours negotiating with the man inside through the letter box. "It was about 4.45am when we heard two gunshots from inside the house. We saw officers rushing through the door.

"Everybody was out on the street watching. We couldn't believe what was happening."

The IPCC said two investigators had been sent to Braintree "to get more information and assess the available evidence before a decision is made as to whether or not it warrants further IPCC investigation".