For weeks, the case grew more disturbing. On 3 January 2016, Sian’s car was found abandoned in Bethnal Green.

Two days later, officers searched her home and discovered three bodies buried in the garden.

Investigators confirmed on 7 January that Sian and her sons had died from head and neck injuries. What they had endured was beyond comprehension.

Simpson-Kent had fled the country, travelling to Ghana on December 19. A worldwide manhunt followed.

When Ghanaian police arrested him on January 9, his lawyer, Justice Srem-Sai, claimed the suspect’s rights were being breached, insisting a “person must be released until you have the legal right to detain them”.

Despite the protests, Simpson-Kent agreed to return to the UK, telling an Accra court he would do so voluntarily. He was arrested at Heathrow on 12 February 2016 and charged with triple murder.

At the Old Bailey that June, he finally admitted killing Sian and their children.