Ian Huntley’s body ‘is still sitting in hospital weeks after he died’ as it’s revealed child killer will get no funeral
Child killer Ian Huntley’s body has reportedly been sitting in hospital for weeks since he died.
The murderer’s life support was switched off nearly three weeks ago after he was savagely beaten to death by a fellow inmate with a metal pole.
Huntley, 52, had been serving life in prison at HMP Frankland in County Durham for the murder of 10-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in 2002.
His body has been lying at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Newcastle for 18 days after he died on March 7, The Sun said.
There were worries that he would get a state-funded funeral as mandated by a Ministry of Justice (MoJ) scheme for inmates who die in custody. £3,000 of taxpayer money can go towards a funeral and memorial service.
His relatives declined the state-paid funeral offer out of respect for his victims.
Fellow inmate, triple killer and rapist, Anthony Russel, 43, has been charged with the murder.
A source close to the family told The Sun: ‘There will be no service, no memorial, no mourners, nothing. It is as it should be.’
They added: ‘He will simply be cremated and his ashes handed to his family.
‘They have always been utterly appalled by what he did.
Ian Huntley, 52, will not get a funeral after his ashes are handed to his family following the brutal attack that killed him in prison, a source has said
Triple killer and rapist Anthony Russell, 43, has been charged with Huntley’s murder
A court sketch of Russell appearing via video link at Newton Aycliffe Magistrates’ Court facing charges of Huntley’s murder
‘It was unforgivable and, for those reasons, they could not in good conscience hold a funeral.’
Under the MoJ, up to £3,000 of taxpayer money can be paid directly to funeral directors to buy a simple coffin, a hearse and contribute to cremation or burial fees under the scheme.
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In place of a funeral, Huntley’s ashes will be scattered at a secret location over fears of reprisals, the source said.
His own daughter told The Sun on Sunday that his ashes should be ‘flushed down the toilet’.
A petition against the state-funded funeral quickly amassed more than 55,000 signatures.
Justice Minister Sarah Sackman said: ‘This man, Ian Huntley, doesn’t deserve anything more than the absolute bare minimum.
‘We’re not spending £3,000. That’s the maximum in our policy that it affords.
‘But the key thing here is that we stand with those families. I don’t really want to be talking about Ian Huntley.
‘What I’m only sorry about is that he’s no longer alive, rotting in prison, thinking about what he did to those two little girls.’
An inquest will be opened and then adjourned on April 14 to allow his body to be cremated after forensic testing. The hearing will establish the circumstances of his death and the date.
A full inquest will be held once criminal proceedings against his alleged killer Anthony Russell are finished, who has appeared in court earlier this month for Huntley’s murder.
It is said he attacked him with a metal pole in the recycling workshop on February 26.
The brutal attack left Huntley ‘unrecognisable’ and in a coma with a five per cent chance of survival. After several surgeries, medical intervention was withdrawn from Huntley, who was in a vegetative state.
He died at 8.45am on March 7 after his mother had visited him.
The Ministry of Justice issued a statement on his death, reading: ‘The murders of remains one of the most shocking and devastating cases in our nation’s history, and our thoughts are with their families.’
An internal investigation has been opened into how he was targeted and killed.
His death was nearly 24 years after his gruesome crimes.
Ten-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman had set off to buy sweets from a family barbecue and Holly’s home in Soham, Cambridgeshire.
An infamous photo was taken of the pair of best friends, both wearing Manchester United jerseys, 90 minutes before they vanished.
Ian Huntely murdered 10-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman. The best friends had dissapeared from a family barbecue when Huntley, then a school caretaker lured them back to his house and killed them, dumping their bodies in a ditch
Huntley, then a school caretaker, had lured them back to his home, where he murdered them and later dumped their bodies in a drainage ditch near RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk. They were not found for two weeks.
The vile killer was found guilty of their murders in 2003 and sentenced to a minimum of 40 years. His then-girlfriend Maxine Carr was also jailed for lying to police and trying to cover up the killings.
She was released in 2004 as part of a blanket anonymity order. She married in 2014.
Huntley had been targeted many times throughout his sentence by other inmates’ ruthless attacks.
In 2005 he was scalded with boiling water. In 2006 he tried to kill himself in his cell but was rushed to hospital. In 2010 he had his throat slashed but was treated with stitches and survived.
He had been transferred to high-security HMP Frankland in 2008, where he would be murdered nearly two decades later.
