Detectives said yesterday that they had detained the father of a woman and her young brother who were found murdered at the weekend.

Police said that Michelle Thomson, 25, described as severely disabled, and her brother Ryan, 7, died in particularly violent circumstances.

They were found dead, reportedly in separate rooms, at the home of their father, Robert Thomson, in Buckhaven, Fife, on Saturday evening.

Another son was in an upstairs bedroom at the time but has told police that he heard nothing until his mother entered the house and discovered the bodies.

Mr Thomson, 49, a lorry driver, was detained in custody yesterday after being treated in hospital in Dunfermline following the incident. He is believed to have recently separated from his wife but the children had been staying with him on a temporary basis.

Detective Superintendent Alastair McKeen, of Fife Police, said: “A 49-year-old man has been detained and is going to be questioned in the very near future in connection with the murders of Michelle and Ryan.

“I can also confirm that earlier, Robert Thomson — the father of both children — was released from the care of Queen Margaret Hospital in Dunfermline.”

He said that he could not reveal the injuries sustained by the brother and sister but confirmed that they suffered “particularly violent deaths”.

“It was an extremely harrowing scene which confronted the police officers and paramedics when they arrived at the house,” Mr McKeen told reporters.

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