Man, 36, and wife, 33, found dead after ‘row over parking’ with their two kids discovered in home as men, 34 & 67, held

A MARRIED couple were found dead with their two "distressed" children at a house after a long-running dispute boiled over.

They were both found with serious injuries inside their home in the picturesque village of Norton Fitzwarren, Somerset.


They were last night named locally as 36-year-old Stephen Chapple and his wife Jennifer, 33.

Stephen is understood to be a computer teacher at a secondary school.

Paramedics battled to save them after being called at around 9.45pm on Sunday but they were pronounced dead at the scene.

The couple had been involved in an ongoing row in the weeks before the attack, sources confirmed.  

Their two children, who were inside the property at the time, are being cared for by specialist officers.

Residents living close to the couple said they had two young sons, aged around four and seven.

Two men, aged 34 and 67, have been arrested on suspicion of murder and are being quizzed.

The men are believed to be related to one another.

Cops confirmed they had previously been called to deal with rows, believed to be about parking issues.

Neighbours living on the new build estate around Dragon Rise where the killings took place described the victims as "very friendly".

One local resident said: "I knew them by sight but I didn't know their names, my dog used to really like the lady."

Locals also left thermoses of tea and coffee for the police working at the crime scene.

Another neighbour said an air ambulance from a nearby military base was scrambled but it was too late.

Avon and Somerset confirmed it was in the process of voluntarily referring itself to the police watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

Post-mortems are expected to be completed by the morning.

Detective Inspector Neil Meade, of the Major Crime Investigation Team, said: "The thoughts of everyone in the force are with the families of the two people who sadly died.

GRIM DISCOVERY

"Two young children were inside the property at the time of the incident and while thankfully they weren't hurt, they are understandably distressed at what has happened.

"They are being looked after and specially trained officers have been deployed to support the victims' families in what is undoubtedly the most difficult of times."

He added: "We will carry out a full and thorough investigation and we will do all we can to achieve justice for the victims' families.

"While this appears to be an isolated incident, there will be increased police activity in the area to provide the community with reassurance.

"Incidents like this are very rare but when they do happen, we know they cause significant concern so we'd urge anyone with worries or questions to speak to an officer or contact their local neighbourhood policing team."

“If anyone has information which would help our investigation, please phone 101 and give the call-handler the reference number 5221274497.”

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