A MAN has been charged with double murder after a married couple were found dead in the early hours of Father’s Day, leaving their young child orphaned.

Geoffrey and Michelle Hibbert were killed in an attack at their home in Buckland Avenue, South Ham, on Sunday, June 21.

Police were called to the scene just before 2am where the motorcycle repairman and stay-at-home mother were pronounced dead.

Officers then descended on Vidlers Farm in Sherborne St John where 52-year-old Stanley Elliot was arrested on suspicion of murder.

He was charged and following a court hearing yesterday, will appear at Winchester Crown Court on Friday.

Detectives cordoned off the street for two days while forensic officers carried out their inquiries.

You can read the full story in this week’s edition of The Gazette. Also in this week's paper:

  • Drivers need to take responsibility for their safety on the roads. That is the message from the AA after four people were killed on roads across the borough in the past week.
  • Dramatic video footage shows the moment a cash machine is blown up by an alleged organised crime group.
  • The opening of a new shopping centre in Basingstoke has resulted in the demise of the Brighton Hill Retail Park, according to its owners. 
  • A paedophile sent a video of himself masturbating to what he thought was a 13-year-old girl and told her to take her knickers off whilst at school. 
  • A Basingstoke political party is launching an event to discuss men’s mental health.  
  • Events held in Basingstoke will be excluded from an order which could see people banned from drinking alcohol in parks and open spaces around the town centre. 
  • A Basingstoke GP surgery is set to be taken over for the second time in two years in a few months time.
  • Villagers campaigning to buy their village green after a council error are hoping that Christmas will come early.
  • PLUS: All the latest from Basingstoke Magistrates' Court.
  • Two pages of your letters to the editor.
  • Pictures: Basingstoke basks in June sunshine.
  • The latest news from our communities.
  • An eight-page puzzle special.
  • Business news.
  • Three pages of entertainment news.
  • Four pages of sports news. And much more!

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