Ian Huntley’s funeral could be paid for by taxpayer as child killer dies
Taxpayers could be on the hook for the funeral costs of the child killer.
Huntley is dead after being attacked by an inmate with a metal bar (Image: Andy Stenning/Daily Mirror)
Taxpayers could be forced to shell out thousands of pounds for the funeral of the child killer Ian Huntley. The former caretaker, who murdered ten-year-olds Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells, died this morning after being attacked in a maximum security jail by an inmate with a metal bar.
According to reports, suspect and triple killer Anthony Russell allegedly shouted “I’ve done it, I’ve done it” after Huntley, 52, was repeatedly smashed over the head at HMP Frankland in Durham, last Thursday morning. Former caretaker Huntley killed the schoolgirls after they left a family barbecue to buy sweets in Soham, Cambridgeshire, on August 4, 2002. The disappearance caused national outcry as searches were conducted across Cambridgeshire before their bodies were discovered in a ditch.
The murders caused national outcry (Image: ENTERPRISE NEWS AND PICTURES)
In one final insult, taxpayers could be left to shoulder the cost of the monster’s death under Ministry of Justice (MOJ) rules.
Currently, under MOJ rules prisons state: “Prisons must offer to pay a contribution towards reasonable funeral expenses of up to £3,000.
“The only exceptions to this are where the family has a pre-paid funeral plan or is entitled to claim a grant from other government departments e.g., Department of Work and Pensions.”
Reasonable expenses include the cost of a coffin, funeral director’s fees, hearse, cremation or burial fees and faith or belief leaders’ fees.
They cannot be used to pay for a headstone, flowers, a wake or an obituary notice.
Huntley’s funeral could be paid for by taxpayers, as was serial killer Peter Sutcliffe’s (Image: -)
Thursday’s assault was the latest attempt on Huntley’s life and he was thought to have been kept under close observation to prevent such attacks.
In 2010, robber Damien Fowkes slashed him with a home-made weapon, causing a “severe, gaping cut to the left side of his neck” with a 7in (18cm) wound which required 21 stitches.
Fowkes asked a prison officer: “Is he dead? I hope so.”
He described Huntley as a “notorious child killer, both inside prison and in society in general”.
Huntley’s life sentence recommended he serve at least 40 years for the Soham murders.
The Daily Express has approached the Ministry of Justice for comment.