Epsom College headteacher Emma Pattison and her husband reportedly hosted a dinner for their friends hours before their tragic deaths. Emma Pattison, 45, George Pattison, 39 and their seven-year-old daughter Lettie were all found dead at their home located on the private school's grounds in Surrey in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Police believe that George Pattison shot his wife and daughter before turning the gun on himself as officers confirmed that a firearm was found at the scene. A friend who attended the couple's final supper hours before the horrendous incident has said that nothing seemed 'unusual' during the dinner party on the Saturday night, the Mirror reports.
According to The Sun, the guest said: "On Saturday night they threw a dinner party. It was quite an intimate affair and literally turned out to be their last supper. Nothing unusual happened. There were no arguments, no indication he would go on to do something so horrific a short time later".
Emma, 45 is understood to have made a distressed phone call to her sister Deborah Kirk who rushed to the scene to help her. In a student podcast which has now been deleted, Ms Pattinson revealed how her new job had caused big changes for her family.
She said: "In terms of transition it’s been a really big change for my family. We’ve moved house - we’ve bought a dog. I’ve got a new job, my husband has got a new job, that wasn’t meant to happen but it did and my daughter has started a new school so there’s been a lot of change for us as a family.”
The head teacher had said she 'hadn't looked back' since becoming a teacher and told the student podcast that 'working with you people keeps you young, they keep you energised'. She added: "I am absolutely loving my time here so far.
"It's been very busy but absolutely wonderful. The college have been so supportive and everyone has been very, very welcoming."
In May 2016, Mr Pattison had contacted police to say his wife had assaulted him in their own home by slapping him across the face. He then made a second call telling police to not visit and said he had overreached but police did attend and arrested Mrs Pattison on suspicion of common assault.
She was questioned and later released without charge. Police were reportedly informed that the couple had been suffering with marriage issues at the time and Mrs Pattinson's new role as deputy headteacher had caused further problems.
Surrey Police had also visited the family home in Epsom just three days before the killings after Mr Pattison notified them of a change of address for his licenced shotgun. The force has now made a self-referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct due to the short period of time between their visit and the three deaths.
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