Is Ian Huntley Still Alive after HMP Frankland assault that left him in hospital
is ian huntley still alive has been a central question after the Soham murderer was found in a pool of blood at HMP Frankland in Durham and taken to hospital, where a Durham Constabulary spokesperson said he remains in a serious condition.
Is Ian Huntley Still Alive
Prison staff discovered Ian Huntley in a pool of blood at HMP Frankland on Thursday, and he was taken to hospital with significant head trauma, police said. The 52-year-old remains in hospital in a serious condition, and a Durham Constabulary spokesperson said there had been no change overnight.
How the attack unfolded at HMP Frankland
Police said the incident followed an alleged assault by an unknown inmate in a workshop at HMP Frankland; Huntley was found following that alleged attack. Officers have said a man in his mid-40s is being investigated; he has not been arrested at this stage but remains in detention within the prison.
History of violence against Huntley inside prison
The latest assault at HMP Frankland is not the first time Huntley has been attacked while in custody. The context states that an inmate slashed Huntley's throat with a makeshift knife in an earlier incident and was later jailed for life. The material also names Damien Fowkes, who was sentenced to a minimum of 20 years for the attempted murder of Huntley in March 2010 and the manslaughter of child killer Colin Hatch; it says Fowkes inflicted a seven-inch wound on Huntley's neck and that it was only "good fortune" the weapon missed anything vital. There is a discrepancy in the provided context about the timing of that later sentencing: one part says the attacker was jailed in 2011, while another gives the March 2010 sentencing date; this timing is unclear in the provided context.
Why Huntley has long been a target in custody
Huntley has been attacked several times while serving his sentence, and the context notes that any prisoner convicted of a child sex crime is a target for other inmates. The material adds that "from his first day inside, there was a price on Huntley's head" — not a monetary one, but the promise of "respect" for anyone who attacked him. The context also states Huntley would have been held on Rule 43 in the prison's unit for vulnerable inmates, a unit that houses mostly sex offenders and police informants.
The Soham murders and Huntley's conviction
Ian Huntley was convicted for the murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, who were both 10 years old and pupils in the same class at Soham's junior school. The girls vanished after leaving a family barbecue on 4 August 2002; their disappearance prompted searches of the town and the flat countryside of The Fens. A fortnight after searches began, the bodies of Holly and Jessica were found in a ditch about 10 miles away, near RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk; they had been asphyxiated.
Huntley, a former school caretaker, gave detailed media interviews during the search and later sat in his car shortly after speaking to a journalist. Debbie Tubby gave evidence at his trial that four days after the girls went missing Huntley asked her if police had found their clothes. He also gave another media interview at the College Close home he shared with his then-girlfriend Maxine Carr. Huntley was jailed for life in 2003 and was sentenced to at least 40 years in custody; the judge warned he had "little hope of release. " Images of Holly and Jessica in matching Manchester United shirts became widely seen during the search.
What happens next
Durham Constabulary said the investigation into the Thursday assault is continuing and that the man being investigated remains in detention within the prison. Huntley remains in hospital in a serious condition, and officials have said there has been no overnight change in his status. Questions such as is ian huntley still alive have circulated since the assault; the confirmed next steps in the provided context are the ongoing police investigation and Huntley's continued hospitalisation.
