Northampton murders: missing Anxiang Du car puzzle

Officers investigating the deaths of a family of four have launched a nationwide manhunt for a businessman who’s suspected of being involved in their deaths.

At a press conference on Wednesday officers described as a “puzzle and an enigma” that, given today’s automatic number-plate recognition technology, there had been no sighting of the Vauxhall Corsa that they believe their main suspect Anxiang Du escaped in.

University lecturer Jifeng Ding who worked at Manchester Metropolitan University, his wife Helen and their daughters Alice and Xing were found dead at their detached home in Wootton, Northampton, on Sunday. They all died from stab wounds.

Police want to question Mr Du, a business associate of Helen Ding, who detectives believe arrived at the home of the murdered family at 1pm last Friday.

Sixty officers are now searching for Mr Du, who has not been seen since appearing on CCTV footage at a train station, possibly on the way to the Ding family home.

Mr Du, who is from Coventry, worked at a Chinese herbal medicine shop in Birmingham. Detectives say he was last seen in the city centre, but left his workplace later that morning. They believe that the Vauxhall Corsa, which had been hired by the Ding family and is now missing from their address, may have been taken by Mr Du.

Officers on Wednesday described the murders as a “premeditated act.” They’ve also revealed that Mr Du had apparently written a suicide note shortly before the murders took place, and have asked for the help of the local chinese community in finding him.

Police stress they don’t believe there is a general threat to the public and that Dr Ding and his family members were specifically targeted rather than falling victim to a random attack. Officers have also stressed that the family had no known links to chinese Triad gangs.