UMVA has learned that a devastating tragedy has struck a family from the Uxbridge area of London, where three sisters, Jane, Christina, and Rebecca, lost their lives in a heartbreaking incident.
Their aunt, Ajike Johnson, has spoken out about the tragedy, saying it 'traumatised the girls' and that they 'never recovered.' The family and police are now investigating whether the sisters could have walked into the water, as their mother had done, but stepmum Genevieve Barnaby-Adetoro dismisses this possibility.
Ajike, affectionately known as Aunt Jik to her nieces, hopes that the incident was a terrible accident, and that the girls may have been 'being mischievous' and one of them lost their footing, prompting the others to dive in and try to save them.
The family has been retraumatised by abusive comments left by conspiracy theorists on social media, with Genevieve saying that people are 'heartless' and demanding answers. Ajike added that the family is asking questions themselves, such as why the girls were in Brighton and what they were doing.
Ajike revealed that the girls loved David Attenborough and may have decided to 'go for a paddle' after attending an event in Brighton for the natural historian's 100th birthday the night before. She believes that if one sister fell in, the others would have tried to help, as they were always together.
Genevieve said that there is no comfort in the thought that the girls died together, as they had lived their lives closely intertwined. A GoFundMe appeal has been set up to give the sisters a 'loving and dignified farewell,' and has attracted nearly £40,000 in donations in its first 24 hours.
Sussex Police have said that there is no evidence to suggest criminality or that anyone else was involved, but specialist detectives are working to gather the full facts and circumstances around their deaths. The investigation is ongoing, with hundreds of hours of CCTV footage reviewed and inquiries made to businesses and properties around the beach area.
The police are urging anyone with information to come forward, particularly those who saw the sisters around the Madeira Drive area between 10pm on May 12 and 5.30am on May 13. The force has vowed to 'leave no stone unturned' in the investigation to understand what led to the tragic events.
