A father who blasted his wife and daughter to death with a shotgun in a swimming pool car park had to be identified by his fingerprints after shooting himself in the head, an inquest heard.
Police have now been asked to investigate how Lance Hart, 57, was able to obtain the weapon after an inquest was opened into the deaths of him, his wife Claire, 50, and daughter Charlotte, 19.
Officers have also been told to look into the marital relations between the couple amid rumours that Mrs Hart told her husband their 26-year marriage was over and she was leaving him days before she was gunned down in Spalding, Lincolnshire.
Charlotte Hart, 19, (pictured left) and her mother Claire (right) were shot and killed by Lance Hart last week
Hart ambushed his wife and daughter after hiding under a car in a leisure centre’s car park. At the inquest, which was opened and adjourned until October 19, police were asked to investigate how and where he obtained the single-barrelled shotgun from.
Lincolnshire Police have previously confirmed that Hart did not hold either a shotgun certificate or a firearms licence and the source of the gun involved is an active line of inquiry.
The brief hearing at South Lincolnshire Coroner’s Office in Boston heard that Charlotte, a midwifery student at Northampton University, was shot in the upper abdomen and identified by her brother.
Her mother was shot in the chest and abdomen and was identified by comparison with a photograph.
Hart suffered a shot to the head which was self-inflicted, and was identified by his fingerprints, the inquest heard.
The father-of-three knew his wife was going swimming with their only daughter on Tuesday last week, and lay in wait for them near the Castle Sports Complex.
A witness described seeing a man hiding under a car just minutes before the horror unfolded in the small market town.
Hart appeared to have planned the attack after arranging to meet his estranged wife to discuss their separation. He then turned the gun on himself.
A source said: ‘Claire had left him. I don’t know what the issues were in their marriage, but I can’t understand why he had to kill his daughter as well.’
Hart (pictured) had to be identified by his fingerprints after shooting himself in the head, an inquest heard
Officers were asked to probe the marital relations between the pair amid rumours Mrs Hart told her husband their 26-year marriage was over days before she was gunned down in Spalding, Lincolnshire (pictured)
A relative of Hart confirmed his wife had recently ended their marriage, adding: ‘Lance would have been upset but that cannot explain or justify what he has done.’
Police put local schools on lockdown and told residents to stay inside and lock their doors after the shootings, amid fears a gunman could be on the rampage.
But Hart was dead when armed officers arrived at the scene, and Mrs Hart and her daughter had horrific injuries.
Rescuers attempted to resuscitate them but neither could be saved. It is understood that Hart did not own a shotgun or hold a licence for one, and the police investigation will look at how he got access to it.
Charlotte’s blue Toyota Aygo car was parked at the sports centre and has been sealed off by police.
Detectives swooped on the £280,000 five-bedroom detached home in the nearby village of Moulton where the family had lived for almost a decade.
The house was put up for sale recently. Neighbours said Hart had claimed he and his wife wanted to ‘downsize’, saying: ‘He was full of the joys of spring, his kids had left home and they were going to downsize and buy somewhere in the village.’
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