The town was ‘put on the map for all the wrong reasons’

Residents in the town where Ian Huntley killed two schoolgirls have shared their thoughts after his death at the weekend. Huntley was attacked at HMP Frankland on February 26 by another inmate, which left him blind and fighting for his life.

After his life support was turned off, Huntley died in hospital on Saturday (March 7). Huntley killed Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells, 10, in Soham on August 4, 2002.

In Soham today, residents have shared their reaction to his death – and their hopes that the town can now move on. One man, who asked not to be named, said “good riddance”.

He added: “Soham has had to deal with so much attention since that horrible thing happened to those poor girls. It’s put the town on the map for all the wrong reasons.” Now that Huntley is dead, he hopes it is the “end for the family of those girls, but also people who live here”.

Another man named Edward, who asked to use only his first name, said the tragedy has “haunted our town since 2002”. Edward added: “It’s not nice that it’s known for that. To whoever killed him, they’ve done the world a favour.

“Now he’s dead, I hope that it’s the end for Soham and for the families because they have been through enough. The girls should be remembered and that horrible man that did the unthinkable should be forgotten.”

Emily didn’t live in Soham in 2002, but understands how much the murder affected the town. She said: “I don’t know what it was like at the time but I know from people in town, it’s all it’s known for and they are sad it is. Personally, I’m happy that he’s dead.

“He has caused so much pain to the girls’ families. He’s put a bad name on Soham and now it should be left alone.”

One man, who wished to not be named, said he didn’t have much to say about “that vile thing”. He added: “He’s had too much attention already. Now that he’s dead, I hope it’s the end. The girls’ families deserve to be left alone as they have gone through turmoil.”

One woman who worked with Huntley also told CambridgeshireLive she “didn’t like him” before the murders. Her partner also said: “He [Ian Huntley] had one problem, he breathed. The only other problem is when he died, he wasn’t conscious.”