Soham murderer Ian Huntley could have his funeral or cremation paid for by taxpayers unless his family makes alternative arrangements.
Justice secretary David Lammy has come under pressure to prevent any costs being covered by the taxpayer or prison service time being spent marking the child killer’s death.
Under a long-standing prison service policy, governors must offer to make a contribution of up to £3,000 to cover basic funeral expenses for any death in custody.
Huntley, who murdered 10-year-old schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in 2002, died in hospital on Saturday after he was attacked in the workshop of a maximum security prison on 26 February.
He was serving a life sentence with a minimum term of 40 years at HMP Frankland, Durham.
Ian Acheson, a former prison governor and prison expert, told The Times: “Lammy needs to be all over this. He will have the ability to override any prison service instruction, order or framework that might provide this to happen because that isn’t law, it’s just interpretations of the law.
“If there’s anything that says it’s mandatory for him to have a memorial service, that must and can be overridden by the secretary of state.
“This will need to be handled very carefully because it’ll be political dynamite if there’s anything other than him being cremated and distributed into a field somewhere.
“There will certainly be people attracted by his sadistic, putrid notoriety so we must ensure nobody can capitalise on his death.”
Samantha Bryan, the daughter of Huntley, admitted she was “over the moon” to find out her father had died, and said his ashes should be flushed down the toilet.
After his death, the 27 year old said: “I felt relieved. I didn’t cry. I smiled. I was over the moon to be honest.”
Ms Bryan told the Sun on Sunday: “He shouldn’t have the dignity of a funeral and grave. I will not be going. A funeral is pointless for a man like him.”
According to the newspaper, Ms Bryan only found out who her father was while researching for a school crime project when she was 14. Her mother, Katie Bryan, had been in a relationship with Huntley when she was 15 and became pregnant with his daughter at 16.
Any money granted by prison services cannot be used for a headstone, flowers, or order of service sheets.
Other murderers, including Raymond Morris in 2014 and Peter Sutcliffe, the Yorkshire Ripper, in 2020, had their funeral costs covered by the scheme.
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “The murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman remains one of the most shocking and devastating cases in our nation’s history, and our thoughts are with their families.”
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