The 2002 murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman gripped Britain for two weeks during a massive missing-persons search and remain among the most widely remembered crimes in modern British history. Huntley’s death in prison has opened a new criminal investigation into violence behind bars.
Ian Huntley, the former school caretaker convicted of murdering two 10-year-old girls in one of Britain’s most disturbing crimes, died Saturday in a maximum-security prison, days after a fellow inmate struck him repeatedly over the head with a metal bar, the U.K. Ministry of Justice confirmed. Huntley, 52, had been on life support since the Feb. 26 attack in a workshop at Frankland prison in northeast England.
The U.K. Ministry of Justice called the case one of the most shocking and devastating in British history and said its thoughts were with the victims’ families.
The Soham murders
Huntley was convicted in 2003 at London’s Central Criminal Court of murdering Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, both 10 years old. The girls were best friends who vanished from the village of Soham in eastern England on Aug. 4, 2002, after leaving a barbecue to buy candy.
For 13 days, police searched for the pair as thousands traveled to Soham to leave flowers outside the local church. A photograph of the girls wearing matching red Manchester United soccer shirts, taken shortly before they disappeared, appeared on front pages and news broadcasts throughout the search.
The search ended when a group of hikers found the girls’ remains beside a dirt path in woodland a few miles from the village.
Huntley denied the killings but was convicted after trial. His life sentence carried a minimum recommendation of 40 years.
Years in prison
During more than two decades at Frankland, Huntley survived repeated assaults and was held under close protection along with other high-profile prisoners. In 2010, another inmate slashed his throat.
Maxine Carr, who lived with Huntley at the time of the murders and served as a teaching assistant at the girls’ school, provided him with a false alibi. She was subsequently convicted of perverting the course of justice and jailed for 21 months. She has since been released and reportedly lives under a new identity.
During the original search for the girls, Huntley and Carr both spoke to reporters. Huntley told them he believed he was one of the last people to see the girls alive; Carr said she planned to keep a card Holly had drawn for her.
Investigation
British media reported that Anthony Russell, 43, was responsible for the Feb. 26 attack. Durham Constabulary said it is investigating the circumstances of Huntley’s death and is preparing a file for the Crown Prosecution Service for consideration of charges.