TRIBUTES have been paid to a mother and her son who died just days after Christmas.

Janet Lockhart, 29, and her two-year-old son Michael were found after police forced their way into their home after a family friend raised concern on Saturday evening.

Friends of the mother and her young son yesterday paid tribute to the pair, with neighbours calling the deaths "heartbreaking".

Flowers have been laid outside their home in Bonnyrigg, Midlothian, which is cordoned off by police. The two-storey semi-detached house is still taped off along with several paths out of the street and the nearby car park. Garry Lockhart, 32, husband of Janet and father of Michael has been charged with murder and is due to appear at Edinburgh Sheriff Court today.

Mr Lockhart was treated at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary for injuries and was under a police guard after being found near his home.

The couple and their son had only moved to their home 13 months ago.

A video posted online by Mr Lockhart show him and his son playing with their pet rabbit. The video, titled "nine-month-old boy laughing at his rabbit", shows Michael in his father's arms reaching out for the white and grey rabbit while laughing and screeching.

Ally Craig, 38, who lives just feet from the Lockharts' home with his wife and two young children said that the incident was "devastating."

He said: "I'd seen the woman outside a few times, carrying shopping from her car with her son.

"The first thing I knew about it was when I got home and saw the police tape."