- Welcome to The Crime Desk, the Daily Mail’s true crime channel packed full of exclusives on the cases you can’t stop thinking about
- To get a free exclusive article with new revelations about one of Britain’s most notorious child killers Ian Huntley, sign up to our newsletter HERE
An inmate was charged with murder today after Soham killer Ian Huntley died in hospital following an attack in the workshop of a maximum-security prison.
Anthony Russell, 43, was charged after the assault at HMP Frankland on February 26 and will appear via videolink at Newton Aycliffe Magistrates’ Court tomorrow.
Huntley had been on life support in hospital and died on Saturday aged 52 after suffering severe brain trauma following the attack at the prison in Durham.
Huntley, who murdered ten-year-old girls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in 2002, had his life support switched off after brain tests showed he was in a vegetative state.
He killed Holly and Jessica after they left a family barbecue to buy sweets in Soham, Cambridgeshire, on August 4 2002. He dumped their bodies in a ditch 10 miles away.
They were not found for 13 days, sparking a search involving hundreds of police officers.
At the time, Huntley lived with Maxine Carr who was a teaching assistant at Holly and Jessica’s primary school.
He denied murdering the two 10-year-olds but was convicted after a trial at the Old Bailey in 2003.
Ian Huntley
Anthony Russell
Carr gave Huntley a false alibi and was jailed for 21 months for perverting the course of justice. She is now living under a new identity.
The former school caretaker’s life sentence recommended he serve at least 40 years for the Soham murders.
A spokesman for Durham Constabulary said: ‘A man has been charged with murder following an incident at HMP Frankland in Durham. Emergency services were called to reports of an assault in the workshop on the morning of Thursday, February 26.
‘Ian Huntley, 52, was taken to hospital with serious injuries but died on the morning of Saturday, March 7.
‘Anthony Russell, 43, of HMP Frankland, has been charged with murder and will appear via video link at Newton Aycliffe Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, March 11.’
Christopher Atkinson from the Crown Prosecution Service said: ‘The Crown Prosecution Service has decided to prosecute Anthony Russell with murder following a police investigation into a fatal attack on Ian Huntley at HMP Frankland.
‘Our prosecutors have worked to establish that there is sufficient evidence to bring the case to trial and that it is in the public interest to pursue criminal proceedings.
‘We have worked closely with Durham Constabulary as they carried out their investigation.’
