Soham murderer Ian Huntley dies in hospital after prison attack
Soham killer Ian Huntley died in hospital after being attacked by an inmate in the workshop of a maximum security prison.
The 52-year-old man suffered severe brain trauma in the attack at HMP Frankland, Durham, on February 26. Sun The newspaper reported it for the first time.
He was reportedly blind and was not expected to regain consciousness after being beaten over the head with a makeshift weapon in the maximum security prison.
Huntley, a former school caretaker, was convicted of murdering 10-year-old schoolgirls Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells in Soham, Cambridgeshire, in 2002 in a case that shocked the country. Holly and Jessica were killed after leaving the family barbecue to get candy.
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “The murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman remain one of the most shocking and devastating cases in our nation’s history and our thoughts are with their families.”
Huntley’s life support machine was reportedly turned off on Friday following discussions with his mother, Lynda Richards. Brain tests showed that Huntley was in a vegetative state, the newspaper reported. Huntley was confirmed dead on Saturday.
A Durham Constabulary spokesman said: “A man who was attacked at HMP Frankland in Durham last week died in hospital this morning.
“Ian Huntley, 52, was seriously injured and taken to hospital following the incident that occurred in the workshop on Thursday morning, February 26. The police investigation into the incident continues.
“A file is being prepared for the Crown Prosecution Service to consider charges.”
Sun A source said: “That’s the end of Huntley. He’s effectively dead and on his last legs at best.”
They added: “He never recovered from the beating he received and never had the chance to do so. Huntley had been attacked many times in prison so the day was always going to come when he would be killed.”
Murderer and rapist Anthony Russell, 43, reportedly shouted “I did it, I did it” after Huntley was attacked in the prison’s recycling area.
Durham Police Service did not identify the suspect but said a man in his mid-40s was taken into custody the day of the attack.
Huntley, one of Britain’s most criticized murderers, was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum 40-year bond in December 2003. Huntley lured Holly and Jessica to his home in Soham, Cambridgeshire, where he lived with Maxine Carr, a teacher’s assistant at the girls’ school.
Because Carr was away for the weekend, Huntley killed the girls and dumped their bodies in a ditch 10 miles away. Their disappearance sparked a search involving hundreds of police officers.
As national media flocked to Soham to report on the disappearances, Huntley gave interviews to journalists; A Press Association reporter, Brian Farmer, later became so concerned he went to the police.
During his trial at the Old Bailey, Huntley tried to convince the jury that Holly had a nosebleed and drowned in the bath, and killed her while trying to silence Jessica’s screams.
They did not believe him and he was found guilty of two murders.
The Frankland attack was the last attempt against Huntley and it was thought that he was kept under close observation to prevent such attacks.
In 2005, a prisoner poured boiling water on himself at Wakefield prison in West Yorkshire.
In 2010 robber Damien Fowkes slashed her with a homemade gun, causing a “serious, deep cut on the left side of her neck” with an 18 cm (7 in) wound requiring 21 stitches.
Huntley’s 27-year-old daughter, Samantha Bryan, said after the latest attack: Sun on Sunday “There is a special place in hell waiting for him.”
She told the newspaper: “I started crying because I thought he was dead; it was such a feeling of relief. Being his daughter was a heavy burden. I felt like I could breathe again. I felt like if he died, that burden died with him.”
