Lyon: A 34-year old British mountain biker has been shot dead by a hunter in the French Alps in what appears to have been an accident, police said on Sunday. Britain's Telegraph named the victim as Marc Sutton, a chef from south Wales who lived in the Haute-Savoie region of France near the village of Morzine where he and his girlfriend owned and ran a restaurant. Marc Sutton has been named as the British cyclist killed in the French Alps in a hunting accident. Credit:Facebook He was cycling down a mountain path in thick woods about 6pm on Saturday when he was struck by a single bullet as he passed near a group of hunters, prosecutor Philippe Toccanier said. A 22-year-old man taking part in the hunt is believed to have fired the shot, police said.<doc-sep>First Name Last Name We will use the details you have shared to manage your registration. 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If you wish to object to the use of your data in this way, please tick here. ‘We’ includes The Week and other Dennis Group brands as detailed here<doc-sep>THE Brit cyclist killed by a French hunter deserved to be shot like an animal, his sister said last night. Tributes were paid to Mark Sutton, 34, after he was gunned down by a marksman who apparently mistook him for prey. 10 Mum Katrina and sister Katie say Mark deserved to be killed like an animal Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd But sister Katie Toghill, 32, says he did her family a favour by killing Sutton, who she claimed repeatedly raped and beat her when they were kids. Sutton fled abroad after he was confronted years later by Katie and their mum Katrina, who last night branded her dead son a “monster”. Katie told The Sun last night: “He was a rapist c*** and I’m glad he’s dead. “When I heard he had been killed I felt utter relief, it was a massive burden off my back. I was just relieved he couldn’t hurt us or anyone again. 10 Mark Sutton was a mountain bike enthusiast in his new life in France British mountain biker​ ​Mark Sutton​ cycles off-road in ​Les Gets​, France​ “He deserved to be shot like an animal — he was the biggest animal there was. “They hunted the right animal. I want the killer to get off because he did us a favour. I want everyone to know what scum he was Katie Toghill “It was karma and I knew it would get him one day. “It was a shame he died so quickly, I would’ve liked to have taken the lead out of him slowly and known he was lying there dying. He deserved to be tortured to death.” 10 Mark Sutton moved to France after travelling around Asia Sutton was killed by a single gunshot while riding his mountain bike on Saturday at the Les Gets Alpine ski resort. He ran the Wild Beets Kitchen vegetarian restaurant there with his partner after moving to France around six years ago. It is not suggested she knew of his past. He put us all through hell, now it’s his turn to go to hell and rot. Anne-Marie The 22-year-old hunter was taken to hospital suffering from shock and is currently under police investigation. Mum-of-one Katie, who chose to waive her anonymity, said of her brother: “I want everyone to know what scum he was. I’m fed up of the nice messages I’ve read about him saying ‘poor guy’. 10 Mark, Katie and mum Katrina in their last photo together before Mark fled to Ibiza Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd “I despise it. The comments made me cringe saying how much of a lovely chap he was.” She said he started raping and beating her when she was eight years old at the home they shared with their mum in Caerphilly, South Wales. He was a rapist c*** and I’m glad he’s dead Katie Toghill Katie, who has a year-old daughter and now lives in Nantyglo, Wales, went on: “He would take advantage of me in his bedroom while mum was downstairs. He threatened that if I told anyone he would kill me, everyone would hate me, and no one would believe me. “I knew it was wrong, I knew he shouldn’t be doing it. 10 A hillside near the site of the shooting Credit: Alamy “I didn’t know it was rape, but I knew it wasn’t normal behaviour between brother and sister. I was in shock after. “He carried on doing it again and again. It was every few weeks, I think he attacked me around 100 times. I was petrified. He said we’d be split up and put in care if I told anyone. I couldn’t be away from my mam. I kept quiet for so many years.” He deserved to be shot like an animal — he was the biggest animal there was. Katie Toghill She said Sutton also regularly beat her, going on: “He kicked me, put hands round my neck, held screwdrivers and knives to my neck and threatened to kill me. He punched me and pushed me down the stairs, and jammed my foot in the car door.” Their mum, now of Cwmtillery, said she had no idea of the abuse but struggled to cope with her son who was in trouble from an early age. 10 Mum Katrina says Mark was unruly at school and went into care for 18 months Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd She said: “At four, three days after starting school, I was told to take him away and not bring him back. He tried to stab another kid with a dinner knife. He was arrested at 11 for threatening another child with a knife. Katie was a timid little thing, I now know why.” At 11, Sutton went into care for 18 months due to unruly behaviour. But he would return home on day visits and rape Katie while they were upstairs. Sutton finally stopped the attacks when she was 13. Katie said: “One day he went to attack me and I said I was having periods and so I could get pregnant and everyone would find out. I was lying but I was desperate and it worked.” However Katie still could not tell her mum. 10 Katie joined the Army at 17 as a medic Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd Meanwhile, Sutton’s violent outbursts continued after he left school at 15 and got a factory job with his stepdad. He began dating a girl, Ann-Marie Mounty, but smashed her windows after he was dumped. He went to hospital with cuts and was sectioned. This man was a monster. A bullet aimed at an animal. You aimed well. Karma called on you Katrina Ann-Marie, 33, of Caerphilly, yesterday told The Sun she “cried with relief” after hearing he had been killed. She said: “He put us all through hell, now it’s his turn to go to hell and rot. They painted him out to be some sort of angel. We know what he’s like. He got off lightly really. He was a psycho.” 10 Mark was jailed for six months for shattering an ex-girlfriend's cheekbone Credit: Athena Picture Agency<doc-sep>The girlfriend of a British cyclist who was shot dead by a hunter has hit out at the cyclist’s mother for claiming that he repeatedly raped his own sister when they were children. Mark Sutton, 34, was killed by a single gunshot while riding his mountain bike on Saturday at the Lets Get Alpine ski resort. The 22-year-old hunter who shot him was taken to hospital to be treated for shock and is currently under police investigation. Mark Sutton, 34, was killed by a single gunshot while riding his mountain bike on Saturday at the Lets Get Alpine ski resort (Picture: Facebook) Mark’s mother, Katrina Toghill, yesterday claimed that her son sexually attacked his sister, Katie Toghill, when they were younger and said she was ‘glad he’s dead’ and ‘deserved to be shot like an animal’. But Mark’s girlfriend Jo Watts has hit back, calling the claims ‘wicked lies’. Jo, who had been with Mark for nine years, told the Daily Mail: ‘The Marc I knew and loved was a kind, happy, loving man who would do anything for anyone. ‘I’m devastated people have chosen now to make these allegations – nothing to do with how he died – when Marc is not here to defend himself.’ Mark’s father, John, has reportedly reported his ex-wife Katrina and daughter Katie to the police for making up the story. He told MailOnline: ‘I have been to police and made a report that these allegations are all lies, completely false, and it’s harassment.’ Mark’s mother, Katrina Toghill, right, claims that her son sexually attacked his sister, Katie Toghill, left, when they were younger (Picture: Katrina Toghill/Facebook) Mark’s girlfriend Jo Watts has hit out at the mother and daughter’s claims (Picture: Facebook / Mark Sutton) Katie, a mum-of-one, said Mark moved abroad after being confronted with his attacks by her and her mum. Amazon mocked for AmaZen mental health 'cry closets' set up on factory floor She told the paper: ‘It was karma and I knew it would get him one day. It was a shame he died so quickly I would have taken the lead out of him slowly and known he was lying there dying. ‘He deserved to be tortured to death.’ She also described how Mark raped her more than 100 times when she was 11 and it only stopped when she turned 13 and lied that she got her period so could become pregnant. The 22-year-old hunter who shot Mark, pictured, was taken to hospital to be treated for shock and is currently under police investigation (Picture: Mark Sutton / Facebook) The cyclist reportedly fled the UK but was arrested and jailed for six months after another ex-girlfriend claimed she had her cheek broken by Mark when they lived in Preston. Katie added that when she originally told her mother about the rape, she didn’t believe it. Mark is said to have fled to Ibiza before travelling through Asia and then moving to France. The mother and daughter never saw him again. Writing on Facebook after the news of his death, Katrina said: ‘I hope you rot in hell Mark Thomas Sutton. My only disappointment is you died instantly. Katie, a mum-of-one, said Mark moved abroad after being confronted with his attacks by her and her mum (Picture: Katie Toghill/Facebook) Katie said Mark deserved to be ‘tortured to death’ (Picture: Katie Toghill/Facebook) ‘For any horrified people reading this, I’m not some vicious troll. I’m the woman who gave birth to him and has had to live with the knowledge that he repeatedly raped my daughter. ‘This man was a monster. A bullet aimed at an animal. You aimed well. Karma called on you.’ Prosecutors have opened a manslaughter probe, and the suspect faces a jail sentence if he is found guilty. Got a story for Metro.co.uk? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. For more stories like this, check our news page.<doc-sep>
A 34-year-old Briton has been shot dead by a hunter as he sped down a wooded track on a mountain bike in the French Alps, officials have said. The victim, understood to be Marc Sutton from Caerphilly, was a restaurant owner who had been living for several years in the small resort town of Les Gets. Sutton ran a private catering business in the area and opened his own restaurant, Wild Beets Kitchen, earlier this year. He was shot on Saturday evening as a hunting party beat its way through woods near the ski resort of Montriond, according to a local prosecutor quoted by the Associated Press. The victim was “perfectly identifiable” and was on a well-used but hard-to-access mountain track when he was shot by a 22-year-old hunter, who was taken to hospital in shock. An inquiry has been launched for aggravated manslaughter, the prosecutor said. A spokeswoman for the UK Foreign Office said: “We are in contact with the local authorities about the death of a British man in France, and we are providing assistance to his family.” A local newspaper, Le Dauphiné Libéré, reported that the accident had happened at about 6pm on Saturday during a seven-man hunt organised by the local hunting association. The victim reportedly died from a single gunshot wound. The man who shot him had not been arrested or charged. The public prosecutor, Philippe Toccanier from nearby Thonon-les-Bains, ordered local gendarmes to secure the scene and recover any available evidence. The accident came barely two weeks after another young hunter in the region was sentenced to a year in jail for involuntarily killing a trail runner with a single bullet to the head, prompting widespread calls for tighter restrictions to be imposed on hunting in areas popular with the public. While in steady decline, accidents are still frequent during the French hunting season. According to the national hunting and wildlife agency ONCFS, 115 people were injured in hunting accidents in the year to 1 June 2018. Thirteen died of their injuries, including three people who were not involved in a hunt.