Fuller family deaths: Father was 'gentle and sensitive'

Sam and Charlotte Fuller's bodies were found along with those of their sister Rebecca and father Ceri

A man discovered dead with his three children in a disused quarry was "gentle, sensitive and intelligent", his family have said.

The bodies of Ceri Fuller, 35, his son, Sam, 12, and daughters, Rebecca, eight, and Charlotte, seven, were found in Shropshire on Monday.

A knife was later found nearby, West Mercia Police said.

Police are investigating if Mr Fuller, from Gloucestershire, had killed his children and taken his own life.

The bodies were discovered in a disused quarry at Pontesbury Hill near Shrewsbury on Monday morning.

In a statement Mr Fuller's family said: "He loved his children dearly."

'Left to grieve'

His wife Ruth said: "I don't have the words to describe how I feel at the moment.

"All I would ask is that I be left alone to grieve with my family."

Mr Fuller's father, David, said of his son: "Ceri was a gentle, sensitive and intelligent man but also a very private one.

Ceri Fuller's wife, Ruth, is being comforted by family

"He loved his children dearly and they were such a focal point of his life.

"His relationship with each one of them was one of gentleness, involvement and attentive nurturing.

"Sam, Rebecca and Charlie were such charming individuals, brought up in an environment of love.

"We cannot begin to imagine what was going through the mind of this gentle man to drive him to such tragic actions."

Officers have said they are not looking for anyone else in connection with the murder inquiry.

Det Ch Insp Neil Jamieson, of West Mercia Police, said the old quarry at Pontesbury Hill and the surrounding woodland at Poles Coppice would remain cordoned off while officers continued a detailed search of the area.

Mr Jamieson said: "Officers involved in the search found a knife in the vicinity of where the bodies were found. It will now be forensically examined."

The four bodies were found "within a 30 or 40-yard area" inside the disused quarry by a police officer, the West Mercia force said.

Post-mortem examinations were due to be carried out on Tuesday.