Sarah Payne’s killer Roy Whiting, 66, attended the trial of Andrew Light, who denied attempting to murder him in an attack using an improvised bladed weapon in HMP Wakefield
Sarah Payne’s killer Roy Whiting left jail today to give evidence against a man accused of trying to kill him, describing the prison attack in detail to the court.
Whiting, 66, was present in court for the trial of Andrew Light. The 45-year-old denied attempting to murder him in an attack using a bladed weapon in HMP Wakefield. Whiting made the short trip from Wakefield to Leeds for the hearing in Court 4 of city’s crown court. Michael Smith, prosecuting, said: “We will not invite you to be sympathetic to any victim. There can be no doubt that Roy Whiting was a victim of an assault at the hands of Andrew Light who was also at the time in HMP Wakefield.
READ MORE: Sarah Payne’s killer could be in line for compensation after he was stabbed behind bars
“Andrew Light has pleaded guilty to assaulting Roy Whiting and pleaded guilty to having a weapon in his possession when he did that. This case is about the intent with which he acted. In a brief summary it is accepted this defendant used an improvised wooden weapon to attack Roy Whiting in his cell and resulted in at least one wound to Roy Whiting’s body.
“What the prosecution say is that attack was with intent to kill Roy Whiting, or an attempt to cause him really serious harm. You will have to ask at the end of this trial whether he attacked with attempt to kill or do really serious harm.
“It is important we submit you know who you are dealing with and what you are dealing with; we invite you to look at his case objectively, he was attacked, the question for you is with what intent did this defendant act?” He added: “The evidence of Whiting is that he was attacked with a wooden shank, an improvised weapon, in his cell, he was able to block the first few blows, he was able to get out and call for help.
“But he was dragged back into cell, the attack continued and he was hit behind the ears, with heavy bleeding, so he hid behind the bed, and the attack came to an end when prison officers came to his aid.”
Whiting is serving a life sentence for murdering eight year-old Sarah Payne, from Hersham, Surrey, more than 20 years ago, the jury heard. She went missing in July 2000 while playing near her grandparents’ home near Worthing, in West Sussex, before her body was found 17 days later.
Light is accused of carrying out the attack on Whiting with a bladed item in February last year and Whiting will come face to face with his alleged attacker. Light, of HMP Manchester, dressed in a blue tracksuit top, appeared in the dock flanked by three prison officers. He was asked to stand so that potential jurors could see him before the jury was sworn in. They heard that the witnesses worked in HMP Wakefield.
The court was adjourned briefly for Whiting to give evidence. Prosecutor Michael Smith said that he was not seeking sympathy for Whiting but he wanted the jury to judge “on the evidence”.
They were shown body cam footage from a prison officer of the immediate aftermath of the attack. Whiting is seen hiding under the bed in his cell on the footage as Light tells the first prison officer on the scene: “He is dead.”
Mr Smith told the jury that Light later told prison staff that he “hoped” Whiting was dead. The jury will be shown footage of Whiting emerging from his cell “covered in blood”, he added. Whiting, in a grey sweat top and specs, was seen in public for the first time in 24 years.
He sat in the dock with a security guard by his side and with three other security personnel by the main entrance to the court. He spoke briefly with the guard as the clerk asked the court to stand when Judge Mairs returned to court.
Whiting then came face to face with Light as he was brought back to the court just as the jury filed in. He swore a religious oath to tell the truth “by almighty God.”
Whiting confirmed he had just returned to his cell after association on the day of the attack and was ticking off the items for his evening meal. “I heard the door open to the cell, I did not know him and had never spoken to him. He asked if I was Whiting and I said yes and he had a shank, a wooden shank in his hand,” he told the court. “He did not say anything and he started swinging at me with the shank in his hands he was facing me and the shank was in his right hand. He was aiming for my head and face first off. It was quite forceful blows as I was blocking some of them with shank towards m face and head. I blocked some with my arms. He did not hit me when I was standing up.“I blocked his arm with my arm. Then I fell backwards onto my bed against the wall. I sat down on the edge of the bed with my back towards the wall. He was in top of me still trying to stab me with the shank he hit my face and side and he was getting a swing at me with my back on the bed. He was trying to stab me as I tried to block it. He came swinging at me again when I got off the bed, anywhere he could hit me with it. A couple of times I got hold of his hand and it eased up a bit.”
Whiting said it was confusing as he tried to defend himself “as best I could”. But he added: “At least a dozen blows connected with arms, side of my face, they were everywhere. I could not say exactly where. I had my legs up and was still on the bed, trying to stop him connecting with me. I was able to get up off the bed. He stood back as I pushed him back, he moved back which allowed me to stand up and defend myself a lot better.
“I got up and he was between me and the cell door and I heard an officer was there as I heard his keys rattling and I made a lunge for the door. But then there were more blows to the head and back as he actually hit me with the shank. I could not get to the door at first but I shouted for the officer and then I was able to get the door open. He hit me in the back, ribs, arms and he caught me on left ear and there was a lot of blood.
“I knew I had been cut badly but didn’t know exactly where. The door opened with the officer there and I moved back so I just dropped and rolled under bed quickly because I was exhausted. There was a lot of shouting then all of a sudden the door was shut. The officers came and they were saying “drop the knife”. There were four or five of them all shouting – they told him to drop the knife a couple of times. He still had the shank in his hand, that is why I went under the bed.”
Whiting was shown some of the photos of his injuries. They were taken soon after the attack, the jury heard. Whiting said he had a scar on the right of his face from an old injury but he had scratch to his cheek and between his eyebrows “during this incident” along with injuries to his ear. They were caused by the shank as was the injury to the left had side of his stomach inflicted when he was standing up by the door of his cell. He thought the ear injury was something “major” as there was so much blood
Whiting spoke with a soft southern accent as he described the marks to his hands which were caused as he tried to block blows in the attack. The injury to the right side of his face and scratch marks to stomach came as he was stabbed with his back to the cell door.
Under cross examination from John Elvidge KC, Whiting confirmed he did not require surgery or stitching but “glue” to treat his injuries. He did not go to hospital but was treated by prison health care staff, he said. The scratch to his face may have been a continuation from one movement down from a blow to the head and he said there was no stab wound “to the throat”. He stood up as he demonstrated to the jury how the weapon was thrust in a downward movement as he lay on the bed.
There were no blows inflicted when he was under the bed, the court heard. Whiting said he was on D wing and was allowed out for association when prisoners can move around freely and “go for water”. Whiting said he had seen Light “once or twice” as a “new face” in the prison but they had never spoken to each other. He added: “I had a pen in my hand. It’s possible I used it against him. I don’t know if it was in my hand when the altercation started.”Mr Elvidge said Whiting could have stabbed him in the face on the bed and he did not suffer any further injures under the bed before Light dropped the knife and left with the prison officers. Whiting finished his evidence and the judge warned the jury to leave the evidence “here” in the court room and not discuss it with anybody.The trial at Leeds crown court continues.