A prisoner accused of murdering Soham killer Ian Huntley in County Durham may be unfit to stand trial, an inquest has heard. Huntley, 52, died in February at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle, nine days after being attacked at HMP Frankland, where he was serving a life sentence.
Attack with a metal bar
The former school caretaker, convicted for the 2002 murders of 10-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, suffered multiple blows to the head with a metal bar. His official cause of death was recorded as a blunt head injury.
Suspect Faces Court
Fellow inmate Anthony Russell, 43, has been charged with Huntley’s murder. He is scheduled to appear at a pre-trial hearing on June 3, but the court has yet to decide if he is fit to stand trial, the inquest was told.
Legal Proceedings Delayed
Coroners’ officer Bradley King said a decision regarding Russell’s fitness for trial is pending. Senior Coroner Jeremy Chipperfield adjourned the case until September 15 due to the ongoing criminal proceedings, as required by law once a murder charge is filed.
Legacy of the Soham Murders
Huntley was convicted of killing his best friends, Holly and Jessica, after luring them into his home in Soham, Cambridgeshire, on August 4, 2002. Despite his claims of accidental deaths during a 2003 Old Bailey trial, the jury rejected his account and sentenced him to life with a minimum of 40 years. His former girlfriend, Maxine Carr, was jailed for perverting the course of justice and now lives under a new identity.
