Soham murderer Ian Huntley was placed in an induced coma after being attacked at Frankland prison
Jeremy Armstrong News Reporter
15:58, 02 Mar 2026Updated 15:58, 02 Mar 2026
Ian Huntley pictured in September 2006. (Image: Andy Stenning/Daily Mirror)
Ian Huntley was so near to death after being assaulted by a fellow inmate that he had to be transported by road, rather than air, to the hospital.
A paramedic and a doctor were flown to Durham’s Frankland prison and stabilised him on site. Due to the severity of his injuries from an attack with a metal pole in a prison workshop, allegedly by a triple murderer, they put him into an induced coma.
An ambulance transported him to the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle, allowing medical staff to continue treating him during the journey if his condition worsened. The air ambulance departed from the prison and landed at the RVI to pick up the medics once Huntley arrived at the hospital following the 30-minute, 19-mile trip.
Armed police provided an escort at the front and rear of the vehicle. Two prison guards and an armed police officer were present inside the ambulance throughout the high-security operation.
“He was placed in an induced coma because he was so close to death,” a source revealed. “The team from the helicopter travelled with him but he could not be evacuated by air in case of any complications.
“He was transported by road because he was in a coma; this helps to keep him stable. The helicopter then travels to the hospital to collect the medics. Two armed officers are guarding Huntley around the clock at the hospital.”
One source told the Mirror, “Medical staff must be professional no matter who they are dealing with. With a high-profile prisoner like Huntley, the patient’s name is not released before arrival at the jail. “Once the medical staff get there, they may recognise the patient but must put that to the back of their minds.”
Durham Police said today: “The 52-year-old man remains in hospital in a serious condition. There have been no changes overnight.”
Ian Huntley. (Image: PA)
Jessica Chapman (left) and Holly Wells. (Image: ENTERPRISE NEWS AND PICTURES)
Prior to the assault, his third during 24 years behind bars, Huntley had grown increasingly paranoid that fellow prisoners were poisoning him. He was discovered in a pool of blood following the attack shortly after 9 a.m. on Thursday.
Huntley, who was employed as a cleaner on A wing at Frankland, had stopped eating prison food because he was so convinced his fellow prisoners were “out to get him”.
Instead, he purchased fast food and confectionery from the shop, causing his weight to soar.
Huntley is serving a life sentence for the murders of 10-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman after they left a family barbecue to buy sweets in Soham, Cambridgeshire, on August 4, 2002. He discarded their bodies in a ditch and became a suspect after giving media interviews about the police investigation.
He is currently serving a minimum 40-year sentence. “He knew that he was a target,” said an insider. “That is why he was so paranoid about his food.”
The bodies of Holly and Jessica were discovered two weeks after they vanished in August 2002.
Huntley was found guilty in December 2003 following a trial at the Old Bailey. His girlfriend Maxine Carr, a teaching assistant at the girls’ primary school, was also imprisoned in 2003 after being convicted of conspiring to pervert the course of justice.
She was released from prison and given a new identity in May 2004. After his arrest, it came to light that Huntley had been able to work with children despite facing allegations of rape and sexual assault.
Humberside Police had received serious allegations against him. An inquiry resulted in criminal checks on anyone working with children.
Huntley was scalded with boiling water at HMP Wakefield in 2005.
He was transferred to Frankland, where robber Damien Fowkes slashed him in 2010. The neck wound was seven inches (18 cm) long and required 21 stitches.
Fowkes asked a prison officer: “Is he dead? I hope so.”
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