A man who was charged with Bermondsey stabbings which saw four members of a family killed to death has admitted to stabbing the family but not to kill them.

Joshua Jacques, 28, has pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Samantha Drummonds, 27, her mother Tanysha Drummonds, 45, grandmother Dolet Hill, 64, and Ms Hill's partner Denton Burke, 68.

He has pleaded to the manslaughter of diminished responsibility, however, the prosecution suggested that the pleas to the lesser offence would not be accepted by the Crown and the case would go to trial.

The family were found with stab wounds on the 25th of April in Bermondsey, south-east London.

After being called by neighbours who heard the disturbance, the police forced themselves into the property and found the body of Ms Hill's partner, Mr Burke at the bottom of the stairs.

Police then found the accused, Mr Jacques hiding naked in the upstairs bathroom where he was tasered during his arrest and taken into custody.

A family friend told The Sun that Jacques had only met the family on Thursday last week. Samantha and Joshua had allegedly been friends for a "long time" before their relationship developed after having only "decided to introduce him to her parents a few days ago."

Another friend described her family as "loving people" who would have "welcomed him with open arms."

Samatha's mother, Tanyasha, was also a victim and her husband, who lost his wife, step-daughter, and mother-in-law during the knife attack said, "I don't know how I will live without them."

He continued: "We don't know what happened or why the stabbings took place.

"All I know is I have a perfect wife, a loving mother-in-law, father-in-law and stepdaughter. We are all one family.

"My reaction at the police station was calm because I did not think it was real. But since then I have not slept. I am going crazy in my head.

"I have never experienced anything like this in my life before and I don't know where to begin.

"It has been a big blow and there is a deep hole in my heart which nothing can fill until I see my wife, my mum-in-law, my father-in-law and stepdaughter alive again."