Barry Bennell, infamous football predator, dies in prison aged 69
Barry Bennell, the disgraced football coach convicted of abusing young boys at top clubs, has died behind bars aged 69. The Sun reports he passed away Saturday morning at HMP Littlehey, Cambridgeshire, after battling cancer.
Convicted paedophile football coach dies in custody
Bennell was found guilty in 2018 of sexually abusing 12 boys, aged between eight and 15, over a 12-year period from 1979 to 1991. The vile crimes shocked the nation and cemented his infamy.
His abuses didn’t stop there. In 2020, Bennell received an extra four years in prison for assaulting two more young boys.
“Devil incarnate”: Judge slams Bennell’s evil acts
At Bennell’s original sentencing in February 2018, Judge Goldstone QC erupted in condemnation. He called Bennell “the devil incarnate” and tore into the coach’s deceptions:
“You portrayed yourself as a god to your victims but were the very personification of evil.”
The judge revealed the full horror of Bennell’s grooming, branding his actions as “sheer evil” that caused “serious, degrading, and humiliating abuse” and stole the innocence of countless children.
Football rocked by scandal, safeguarding forced under spotlight
Bennell’s horrific crimes exposed deep flaws in professional football’s safeguarding of young players. His case prompted urgent calls for reforms and greater protections to prevent such tragedies ever again.
