A father was arrested yesterday on suspicion of murdering his four-year-old son and stabbing his teenage daughter. Chris Hawkins was accused of carrying out the attacks on Ryan, 4, and Donna, 14, before walking down to his local pub and having a drink.

One resident in the street where the attacks happened claimed that he had overheard Donna saying that her father had told her, “Sorry, I am going to kill Ryan”, before repeatedly plunging the knife into her.

The girl was recovering in hospital after the attack in the West Yorkshire village of Slaithwaite, the setting for the ITV drama Where the Heart Is. Another man in the house was arrested at the scene of the attacks.

After the alleged attack Mr Hawkins, 47, went to a nearby taxi office where his estranged wife Valerie works.

Not finding her there he then went to the Silent Woman pub.

Jez Pierce, 39, said: “Chris just walked in, ordered a pint and then went and sat with [another man]. I went and sat with them. Chris looked awful, really pale and washed out. I have known Chris since we were kids. We used to work together.”

Mr Pierce added: “It’s an absolute shock. I just can’t believe what has happened. It’s usually a quiet place.”

The children’s 15-year-old sister, Natalie, was reported to be on holiday with friends. Their great-uncle, George Fellows, said: “We’re a close family and we’re devastated. We just can’t believe it.” His daughter-in-law, Tracey Fellows, added: “It’s just senseless.” Mr Fellows said that the children’s mother was receiving counselling. Forensic science officers were searching the Silent Woman, a funeral home opposite and a terraced house in Royd Street last night for the weapon used in the attacks.

Mr Hawkins, a van driver, had moved in with a friend in Royd Street about two months ago and had access to his son at weekends. It is understood that Donna had arrived at the house to collect Ryan.

Michelle White, a neighbour, said that she had helped to stem the blood from Donna’s wounds. She added: “Ryan was a beautiful little boy. I’m devastated.”

Waqar Zaman, 34, another neighbour and manager of the nearby Hill Top Stores, added: “The girl was lying on the street with Michelle applying pressure to the wounds. Donna was able to talk and said that she had gone into the house and was confronted by Dad who told her, ‘I’m sorry, I’m going to kill Ryan’. He then started stabbing her and she managed to get out. She didn’t know if Ryan was already dead or was killed later.”

Mr Zaman said: “She had a stab wound on her face which went straight through her mouth. She had stab wounds in her stomach just under her ribcage, all over the place. Her right arm was completely broken. She couldn’t breathe — she was complaining she couldn’t breathe, that she was going to die.”

The boy’s death was formally announced at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary, where his sister was described as being in a stable condition. Police said that they were not looking for anyone else in connection with the killing.

Inspector Michael Starkey, of West Yorkshire Police, said: “It’s a domestic-related incident. We received a call from the ambulance service to say there had been a stabbing. We attended and subsequently found the boy who was dead as a result of his injuries. One man was arrested at the scene and the dead boy’s 14-year-old sister had serious injuries. She’s now in a stable condition.

“Following further inquiries we made in the vicinity, a second man — the father of the two children — was arrested.”

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