WE can only imagine what Catherine Wilkins and Anne Squires have been through. When police contacted them about their elderly parents, nothing could have prepared them for the news that followed.

James and Joan Britton, both frail and in their 80s, had been killed at their Strensall home.

Mrs Wilkins and Mrs Squires today relayed a message of thanks through the Evening Press. The support of friends, relatives and the local community has been wonderful, they said. They also paid tribute to the police, and to Derek North whose alertness ended a nationwide manhunt.

We are filled with admiration for the sisters' dignity, courage and selflessness in the face of an unthinkable ordeal.

Updated: 11:13 Wednesday, July 28, 2004