Jo Shaw, 35, died in an explosion at her house in Bristol
Jo Shaw, 35
The woman who died in an explosion at her home in Bristol has been pictured. 35-year-old Jo Shaw was killed when a blast occurred in Sterncourt Road on Sunday morning (May 3).
Jo’s former partner, Ryan Kelly, 41, also died in the incident. Police are treating Ms Shaw’s death as a homicide.
According to neighbours, Kelly, who has previous convictions and links to drug gangs, went to Ms Shaw’s family home carrying what was described as a “grenade”, which detonated, killing both of them.
Avon and Somerset Police said officers had earlier received a call from someone inside the property at 6.17am reporting a domestic-related incident. The caller said a man known to them had forced entry to the house.
At around 6.30am, the caller told police the man was “believed to be in possession of an explosive device”. Around two minutes later, an explosion occurred at the property, the Mirror reports.
Police said the first officers arrived at 6.34am, with fire and ambulance services attending shortly afterwards.
Although formal identification has not yet been completed, police believe the woman is Ms Shaw, who lived at the address, and the man is her former partner, Ryan Kelly. Three other people, including the caller, were treated for minor injuries and did not require hospital treatment.
Neighbour Stuart Blanchard told the Mirror: “The partner’s gone there in a mental state. It wasn’t Jo’s house, it was her parent’s, she just lived there. She had split up with him and I think she moved there to escape from him. She had been complaining to the police for some time before this incident and he had been harassing her.
“I’d heard the shouting before while having breakfast, something like ‘get out, get out’, but there’s something every week in this area so I didn’t go out.”
Mr Blanchard said he then heard a “bang”, which he said “shook” his front door. “I thought it was a gas explosion so stayed inside. I’ve heard it was a hand grenade,” he added.
The house in Bristol where two people died in an explosion(Image: Jon Mills / SWNS)
Superintendent Matt Ebbs said on Tuesday: “We know people will be shocked and upset to learn of the horrendous events that happened on Sunday morning. Jo’s death has been officially recorded as a homicide based on the information known to us at this time. We are not looking for anyone else in connection with her death.
“We know everyone’s thoughts and sympathies will be with her devastated family. Specially-trained officers are providing them with updates and support. We recognise there is significant interest in what happened, but at the centre of it there are many people grieving and we would please ask everyone respects that and gives them the privacy they want.”
Officers worked with Bristol City Council to evacuate nearby properties as a precaution, and a temporary rest centre was set up.
Extensive searches were carried out by the Army’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal team and specialist police officers to ensure the area was safe before the cordon was reduced on Sunday night and almost all residents were allowed to return home.
A search of an address in Speedwell linked to Mr Kelly was carried out over the bank holiday weekend. No evacuations were required at that location.
Two people died in the incident (Image: Tom Wren / SWNS)
Supt Ebbs said: “Police activity continues to be carried out at the property in Sterncourt Road and we expect this will take several days to be completed. We would like to reassure the public there is not believed to be any wider risk to safety and this is not being treated as terrorism-related.”
He added that officers believe the explosion was “deliberate” and that analysis work of the explosive device has not yet been completed.
“We will share all details of our enquiries with the coroner so they can make a final determination around how the deaths occurred in due course. Officers remain in the area and people can speak to them if they have concerns they wish to discuss with us,” he said.
Supt Ebbs thanked emergency services, other agencies and volunteers for their support over the weekend in what he described as a “challenging and complex enquiry”.
Police said a mandatory referral will be made by their Professional Standards Department to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) on the grounds that the deaths came after previous police contact, including earlier domestic incidents reported to the force prior to Sunday.