THE grieving parents of a young soldier, who was found mysteriously shot dead, last night demanded a public inquiry into his death amid fears that a serial killer may be on the loose.

Private Geoff Gray, of Seaham, County Durham, was found dead last September while on guard duty at Princess Royal Barracks in Deepcut, Surrey.

He is one of four young soldiers to have been shot dead at the barracks in the past seven years.

The Army privately suggested that the 17-year-old had committed suicide, despite the fact that he had two gunshot wounds - both of which would have killed outright - on either side of his forehead.

The circumstances surrounding his death have been shrouded in mystery, with a witness at an inquest into his death describing hearing three gunshots in quick succession and seeing a man climbing the fence of the compound that Pte Gray was patrolling. The inquest recorded an open verdict.

Following protests from Pte Gray's parents, Surrey Police have reopened the investigation into his death.

The parents of all four soldiers last night took their demands for a full inquiry to the House of Commons.

Pte Gray's father, also called Geoff, who now lives in Hackney, North London, said the original investigations into the deaths were flawed, with no ballistics evidence or photographs to back up the post-mortem evidence.

He said: "In the case of Geoff, the lack of evidence produced by the military police was just appalling.

"They have just based their investigation on presumption rather than fact. It appears that Geoff was shot from an angle where it was impossible for him to have got into a position to shoot himself once, never mind twice."

Mr Gray added that it was "too much of a coincidence" given the other deaths, and the relatively small compound where they died.

Simon Hughes MP, Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesman, said: "There is no evidence at all that Geoff was the sort of person to take his own life."

Given the ongoing investigations, none of the families would comment on what they really believed was the cause of the deaths, but agreed that the facts were disturbing.

Easington MP John Cummins said he had been contacted by a number of Pte Gray's relatives who still live in Seaham, asking for his help. He is backing the calls for a public inquiry along with Liberal Democrat MP Lembit Opik, who is representing the families.

Mr Opik said: "We can't say if they have been murdered, but we still have an issue. Why are young people dying?"

Lieutenant Colonel Harry Scott said the Army was co-operating fully with the police investigations. He said: "Dealing with this matter is very difficult and very sensitive and any such tragedy is something that we take seriously.

"It is always very difficult for families to deal with any suicide, especially an unexpected suicide. It is really not our business to take it further."