Maxine Carr was jailed for providing her murderous boyfriend Ian Huntley with a false alibi after he murdered Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in the Soham murders – and she has led a quiet life following her release from prison
Caroline Hemmingham Audience Editor – Yorkshire Live, Rachel Stretton and Emma Mackenzie
09:05, 07 Mar 2026
(Image: Getty Images)
Two decades have passed since Maxine Carr walked free from prison with a new identity. Carr was imprisoned for furnishing her killer boyfriend Ian Huntley with a fabricated alibi on 4 August 2002 – the evening he brutally killed schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, subsequently dumping their bodies in an irrigation ditch in Soham, Cambridgeshire.
Carr attempted to protect Huntley by claiming she was at home during that dreadful night – when she was actually in Grimsby.
Holly and Jessica, both aged just 10, had departed from a family barbecue to purchase sweets when they disappeared without trace, only to be heartbreakingly discovered dead 13 days afterwards.
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Throughout the trial, she and Huntley – who had been violent towards her – betrayed one another and are believed to have had no communication since, reports the Mirror.
Whilst Carr has succeeded in reconstructing her life after her release, Huntley has stayed behind bars and is now purportedly battling for survival following a serious attack, reports Yorkshire Live.
The 52 year old was airlifted to hospital after being found lying in a pool of blood. He was allegedly assaulted by a fellow inmate at HMP Frankland in County Durham last week.
“It was absolute chaos and Huntley was in a terrible state. I’m amazed someone was able to get anywhere near him because he is usually really closely protected,” a source told The Sun, adding: “They must have timed it when he wasn’t with prison officers and must have used a weapon to injure him so severely.”
(Image: PA Archive/PA Images)
Coventry triple killer Anthony Russell is reported to have been behind the attack on Huntley.
This wasn’t the first time Huntley has been attacked whilst serving his sentence.
The hunt for Holly and Jessica became one of the most extensive search operations the nation has witnessed.
Carr and Huntley both participated in the search efforts, engaging with journalists and assisting residents, alongside 400 police officers and US Air Force personnel, in scouring the surrounding areas for the missing youngsters.
During one media appearance, Carr – who worked as the girls’ teaching assistant – emphasised her special bond with Holly and presented reporters with a handmade card Holly had created for her at the end of the school term.
Speaking to a television journalist, Carr said: “No one believes they would ever run away. They were very close to their families. This is something that I will keep for the rest of my life.
“It’s what Holly gave me on the last day of term and there’s a poem written inside saying ‘to a special teaching assistant’ and that we will miss her and we will see her in the future. That was the kind of girl she was, she was just really lovely.”
Authorities questioned every registered sex offender throughout Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire, but the primary school pupils remained missing. A widespread media appeal ensured Holly and Jessica dominated newspaper headlines and television news programmes for 13 days, with investigators pursuing every possible lead.
It emerged that Huntley, already under police scrutiny, had returned to the location where he’d discarded the bodies to recover the girls’ distinctive Manchester United shirts and attempted to incinerate them.
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He subsequently concealed the shirts in a bin at his place of work, burying them beneath another rubbish bag. However, officers discovered them, marking a pivotal turning point in the investigation.
Huntley was found guilty of murder and given two life sentences, with a minimum term of 40 years imprisonment. Carr was sentenced to three-and-a-half years for perverting the course of justice.
After serving half her sentence, she was released and provided with a new identity.
She departed Foston Hall prison in Derbyshire in May 2004 under a new identity for her own protection. Over the next two years, Carr was relocated to over 10 different safe houses for security reasons, and in 2011, it was reported that she had given birth to her first child – a baby boy – whilst residing at a secure location.
By 2012, she was reportedly in a serious relationship with a partner who was aware of her disturbing history and was said to be ‘absolutely besotted’ with her. By 2014, she was believed to be residing in a coastal town.
The Channel 5 true crime drama – titled Maxine – portrays her living by the sea, with someone shouting her name, claiming they recognised her. Officials are unable to disclose the name of the town due to the permanent anonymity order granted to Carr by the High Court over a decade ago.
She continues to be one of only four ex-UK inmates afforded permanent anonymity – alongside James Bulger’s murderers Robert Thompson and Jon Venables, plus child killer Mary Bell. During the same year she established herself in her seaside home, Carr is understood to have wed a partner in a £2,000 ceremony complete with all the traditional elements.
The Daily Mail reports that the couple exchanged vows at a confidential hotel venue, with the bride donning a £2,000 ivory gown. Her future husband escorted her down the aisle, insiders revealed, noting that guests were treated to a three-course wedding meal and toasted with £10 bottles of bubbly before the newly married pair set off to a family-orientated destination for their honeymoon.
The revelation is believed to have dealt a painful blow to the devastated mothers of Holly and Jessica, who were denied the chance to see their daughters build their own lives. “The families of Holly and Jessica will never get to see their daughters marry,” an insider informed the publication.
“They will never get to enjoy their big day. They have nothing to look forward to. Why should she?”.
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