Samantha Bryan has spoken out after Ian Huntley was brutally attacked in prison, saying she felt an ‘overwhelming sense of relief’ when she learned the Soham killer was in critical condition
The daughter of Ian Huntley has spoken out after the Soham murderer was severely assaulted in prison. Samantha Bryan, 27, expressed her relief upon hearing that her father, a former school caretaker, was left battling for his life following an attack with a metal pole. Huntley, 52, is currently hospitalised and was given just five per cent chance of survival.
He remains critically ill. Samantha likened Huntley, who murdered 10-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in 2002, to notorious killers such as the Yorkshire Ripper and Fred and Rose West.
In an interview with The Sun, Samantha revealed: “I started crying because I thought he was dead – it was an overwhelming sense of relief. Being his daughter has been a heavy burden. It felt like I could breathe again. I felt if he died, that burden died with him.”
Samantha discovered she was Huntley’s daughter during a school crime project when she was just 14. She stumbled upon a pixelated image of herself and her mother Katie linked to Huntley.
Her mum revealed to her that she was in a relationship with Huntley when she was 15 and fell pregnant at 16, before escaping his violent behaviour, reports the Mirror. Samantha shared: “Mum rang me and told me a friend of hers had just been in touch and Ian had suffered a brutal attack and he was fighting for his life.
“It immediately had a very big impact on me. I got very emotional. There’s a special place in hell waiting for him.”
Katie, 45, said: “I think he got what he deserves. I hope he burns in hell. I’d like to shake the hand of the man who did it.”
Samantha, a beautician from Cleethorpes, said being his child has affected her life and that she feels the “burden” of having the murderer as her biological father. Huntley was savagely attacked in what is now the third assault against him in prison.
Huntley had his throat slashed in an attack in 2010 and needed 21 stitches. Eight years later, he reported that another inmate tried to slit his throat again.
The prime suspect in the most recent attack is Anthony Russell, who is alleged to have declared “I’ve killed him” as he was led away in handcuffs after Huntley was discovered in a pool of blood.
Twisted Russell, 43, was charged with the murder of Julie Williams and her son David, and the savage rape and murder of Nicole McGregor, who was pregnant at the time, during a horrific week-long rampage near Leamington Spa in 2020.
He was imprisoned in 2022 under a whole-life order. Police are persisting with their investigations into the assault on Huntley and have not formally verified Russell’s identity as the suspect.
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