A VERDICT of unlawful killing has been returned by the jury at the inquest into the deaths of mother and daughter, Christine Lee and Lucy Lee.
Jurors returned the verdict last Friday and ruled that failings by Surrey Police and its firearms licensing department contributed to the women’s deaths.
Lowe was jailed aged 82 for a minimum of 25 years, but died in a hospice last August, aged 86.
He had previously had his guns confiscated after being investigated by police, but five of these seven shotguns were later returned to Lowe just seven months before he shot the two women using one of the returned weapons.
The inquest into the murders began on May 23 at Surrey Coroners’ Court, and, after more than 15 hours of deliberation, jurors delivered the verdict and detailed police failings in a written conclusion.
Following the inquest verdict, assistant chief constable at Surrey Police, Jon Savell, said: “Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Christine and Lucy Lee following their tragic deaths on February 23, 2014.
“We recognise the profound impact their deaths have had on those who knew them, and we offer our sincerest condolences.
“The jury has today found that there were failings in decisions taken by the firearms licensing department at that time which we have already acknowledged and for which we apologise.
“In 2014, the force commissioned two independent reports from Hampshire Constabulary and North Yorkshire Police which indicated the decision by firearms licensing officers to return weapons to John Lowe was flawed and did not meet national standards.
“We spoke with members of Christine and Lucy Lee’s family at that time to advise them of these findings and to apologise for that decision.”
Assistant chief constable Savell added: “Since then Surrey Police has undertaken a comprehensive review of its firearms licensing practices and instigated a wide range of recommendations to improve its decision-making practices and ensure public safety is maximised.”