Updated on: March 7, 2026 / 10:40 AM EST / AP
Ian Huntley, 52, one of Britain’s most notorious child killers, has died following an assault by a fellow inmate at a maximum-security prison, authorities said Saturday. Huntley had been on life support after being repeatedly struck over the head with a metal bar on Feb. 26 while working in a workshop at Frankland prison in northeast England.
Huntley was convicted in 2003 of murdering two 10-year-old girls, Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, who disappeared from the village of Soham in eastern England on Aug. 4, 2002 after leaving a barbecue to buy sweets. The girls’ images in matching red Manchester United shirts dominated front pages during the 13-day search. Hikers later found their remains beside a path in a nearby wooded area.
“The murders remain one of the most shocking and devastating cases in our nation’s history, and our thoughts are with their families,” the U.K. Ministry of Justice said.
Huntley always denied killing the girls but was convicted at London’s Central Criminal Court in 2003 and handed a life sentence with a recommended minimum term of 40 years. While in custody he survived multiple attempts on his life and was held under close protection; in 2010 another inmate slashed his throat.
At the time of the murders Huntley lived with Maxine Carr, a teaching assistant at the girls’ school, who provided him with a false alibi. Carr was jailed for 21 months for perverting the course of justice and is now believed to be living under a new identity.
British media have reported that 43-year-old Anthony Russell, a convicted murderer and rapist, carried out the attack. Durham Constabulary is investigating the incident and preparing a file for the Crown Prosecution Service to consider any charges.