Emmerdale star Dominic Brunt has spoken out about Ray Walters’ shocking death in the ITV soap. Ray and his mother Celia Daniels wreaked havoc in the village over recent months, dragging Bear Wolf into a harrowing modern-day slavery storyline in which he was subjected to forced labour and shocking living conditions.

Ray’s body was found earlier this month, and after weeks of speculation as to which character had been behind the villain’s murder, it was revealed that Bear had strangled Ray to death.

Now, Paddy and Dylan Penders are covering up Bear’s crimes, something made all the more difficult now that police are involved in his case after he was found dazed and confused wandering around the area.

Speaking to The Mirror, Brunt – who plays Paddy – shared his opinion on Ray’s death, saying: “You just simply cannot let people get away with that.”

“For us as actors and as a company, we really didn’t want him to go, or Jaye [Griffiths, who played Celia]. But at the same time, soaps are a moral compass, and you just cannot have somebody murdering somebody or human trafficking,” he continued.

“And as much as you give them the human edge, like with the love story between Ray and Laurel, you just simply cannot let people get away with that.

“I think we have a moral kind of standard and a duty, really, to end stories like this correctly.

“Ray was really good and really interesting, and a full 360 degrees three dimensional character with a backstory that wasn’t simple.”

Brunt added: “You were watching it going, you wouldn’t have done. You wouldn’t be in this position if it wasn’t for the fact that this had happened.”