Husband's body 'spotted in water' after he ‘shot wife’ on Valentine’s Day before jumping to death from Dartford Crossing
20 February 2025, 19:30 | Updated: 20 February 2025, 19:41
The body of a husband accused of shooting his wife dead on Valentine’s Day has been spotted in the River Thames, police say.
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Lisa Smith, 43, from Slough, was killed in Knockholt near The Three Horseshoes pub just after 7pm last Friday, Kent Police said.
A man, thought to be Edvard Stockings, fled the scene in a car and is believed to have entered the water shortly after Smith’s death.
While a body is yet to be found, DCI David Higham told KentOnline the force has “good, reliable witness evidence” that the alleged killer had entered the River Thames.
He added there had been a sighting of the body on Saturday but it "became submerged again" before police could begin a recovery.
“It gives me total confidence the suspect has fallen into the river. We had a very large search parameter under the Dartford Crossing,” he continued.
“At around midday on Saturday, we did have a sighting of a body.
"Unfortunately, we were unable to recover it before it became submerged again but I am confident from the description that it is the suspect for our offence.”
In a statement, Detective Chief Inspector Higham said: "We have carried out a full and extensive investigation into Lisa's tragic murder and our inquiries have concluded that the suspect is believed to have died after falling into the River Thames.
"Multiple searches of several areas of the river have since been assisted by the Metropolitan Police, London Fire Brigade and Coastguard, but at this stage we have not recovered a body.
"These searches are ongoing and whilst our investigation will continue, we will be preparing our findings and reports to assist the coroner.
"This murder has led to the senseless loss of a beloved daughter and mother and our thoughts remain with Lisa's family."
The landlady of The Three Horseshoes Michelle Thomas described customers "screaming, shouting and crying" as they realised what had happened.
About 30 people were at the pub for dinner, while 20 more were in the bar as the incident unfolded just after 7pm, she said.
Landlady Michelle Thomas, told LBC: "I heard two bang bangs. I say 'bang bang' because that's what I heard and I thought it was fireworks.
She added: "But then my son came in and said, "something's going on in the car park".
