An 18-year-old has been charged with the murders of a woman and two teenagers who were found dead at a flat in Luton on Friday, Bedfordshire police have said.

Nicholas Prosper, of Leabank, Luton was arrested on Friday morning in Bramingham Road after police discovered three bodies at a flat in Leabank, off Wauluds Bank Drive, at about 5.30am.

The victims are believed to be Juliana Prosper, 48, Kyle Prosper, 16, and Giselle Prosper, 13, although formal identification has yet to take place.

Prosper was also charged with “a number of firearms offences”, police said.

Det Supt Rob Hall, from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire major crime unit, said: “First and foremost our thoughts are with the three people who sadly lost their lives yesterday and their loved ones.

“Although formal identification has yet to take place, next of kin of those who we believe to have died have been informed and are being supported by specialist officers. We would ask that their privacy is respected at this unimaginably difficult time.

“Following the discovery of the three bodies yesterday, we immediately dispatched a number of officers to the scene. Shortly afterwards they arrested an 18-year-old man, who has now been charged with three counts of murder, as well as a number of firearms offences.”

Prosper is due to appear at Luton magistrates court on Monday.