Roy King, the convicted Crystal Palace Park rapist, has died in prison following allegations of sexual assault made by another inmate.
King, who was previously convicted for raping an 18-year-old man at knifepoint in 2007, passed away at HMP Littlehey on 30 January 2023. His death came just days after a fellow prisoner accused him of sexual misconduct.
King, aged 61, had a disturbing criminal history, including multiple offences involving children. He was serving an Indeterminate Sentence for Public Protection (IPP), a custodial measure used until 2012 to detain dangerous offenders indefinitely.
Despite the abolition of IPP sentences, King remained behind bars as part of a group of over 2,000 inmates still subject to the terms.
According to a report by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO), King had been moved to a different prison wing and stripped of his prison job following the recent allegation. An officer who approached him about the claim reported that King responded angrily, shouting, “I know you lot are going to believe that liar.”
King had a history of troubling behaviour behind bars, including making racist threats, which previously led to self-harm and the loss of another prison job. On 27 January, just hours after learning about the new accusation, King overdosed. He was taken to hospital but died three days later.
Although the allegation was reported to Cambridgeshire Police, no further investigation took place due to King’s death. An inquest ruled his passing as a “death by misadventure,” concluding that while the overdose was intentional, he had not meant to take his own life.
The PPO’s report expressed concerns over the handling of the incident, criticising staff for not implementing suicide and self-harm monitoring procedures (known as ACCT) after the allegation emerged.
“Mr King had a history of repeated self-harm following inappropriate behaviour, when he lost his job or after staff told him to do something he did not want to do,” the report stated.
“Although this was clearly recorded in his prison records, staff did not consider starting ACCT monitoring immediately on the morning of January 27, which would likely have led to consideration of removing Mr King’s in-possession medication.”
A clinical reviewer also condemned aspects of the healthcare response and subsequently reported two nurses to the Nursing and Midwifery Council over their conduct.
Crystal Palace Park Attack
King, then living in West Norwood, committed the rape in July 2006 after befriending an 18-year-old man who had missed his train. He offered the victim a place to stay, later attacking him at knifepoint in Crystal Palace Park.
He was arrested the following day and charged with rape and sexual assault. Although King denied involvement, claiming the act was consensual when presented with forensic and CCTV evidence, a jury unanimously found him guilty.
At the time of this conviction, King had 11 prior convictions spanning 25 offences, including several severe sexual crimes against children.
