Crossbow killer Kyle Clifford was filmed struggling to keep up with colleagues in an army training video taken before he dropped out of military service. The rookie squaddie was filmed shortly after signing-up in 2019 in a video on social media captioned “Don’t Break on the Heartbreak Hill Pirbright British Army”. The footage was taken at week eight of Clifford’s training with the Le Cateau Troop.
The future killer quit the army in 2022 after serving just three years serving where he had been deployed with the Household Cavalry Regiment and then Queen’s Dragoon Guards. He was deemed to be deeply unpopular with colleagues who were concerned by his propensity to watch graphic and violent videos, with female colleagues branding him misogynistic. Clifford’s Section Commander described the aspiring solider as “immature” during his time in basic training.
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Kylie Clifford collect pictures. (Image: -)
Kylie Clifford collect pictures. (Image: -)
Corporal Amber Knowles said: “Throughout training I would have described Clifford as many things; immature, flirtatious, nonchalant, but ultimately I would have summed him up as unremarkable. I did admittingly also see a softer side to him, someone who deep down wanted to do well and be liked, but it rarely came to fruition. Most of the time he felt like a naughty schoolboy.
“When the news broke I felt utter disbelief, almost as if it wasn’t him but a doppelgänger with the same name, like some cruel joke.”
Another former colleague added: “Clifford joined the Army in 2019 and I was his Troop Commander from Basic Training. He struggled to grasp basic military concepts but managed to reach the standard to pass out from training.”
After leaving the army he attempted to find work as a security guard but struggled to hold down regular employment. He had a stint working at Amthal, a fire and security installation firm in St Albans, from February 2022 until July 2023. The company said it had had no contact with him since he left.
Corporal Amber Knowles with her unit (pictured) (Image: -)
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At the time of his murder he was in dispute with his last employers – Reynolds Catering – who he claimed owed him money where he had been working as a refrigeration engineer. Amongst the search history found on his phone by police was a google check to query “are settlement payments still made if I die?”
On the day he murdered Louise Hunt, Hannah Hunt and Carol Hunt he was out of work and unemployed.