Secret tapes played to jury

Jurors were played covertly taped conversations

Jurors in the Soham murder trial have heard covertly taped conversations Ian Huntley's mother had with him and with Maxine Carr.

The prosecution told the Old Bailey in London the tapes would be the last pieces of evidence it would present in Mr Huntley's murder trial.

Mr Huntley, 29, the former caretaker at Soham Village College, denies the murder of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman but has admitted one charge of conspiring to pervert the course of justice.

Ms Carr, 26, a former teaching assistant at the girls' primary school, denies the conspiracy charge and two counts of assisting an offender.

The jury was played nine minutes of a taped phone call from Ms Carr to Mr Huntley's mother, Lynda Nixon, on 18 October 2002 from Holloway Prison, where Ms Carr was being held.

Richard Latham QC, prosecuting, said the conversation was taped covertly, adding: "Those taking part were not specifically told they were being taped."

Ms Carr sobbed during the first recording, which was inaudible in parts, saying she wanted to see Mr Huntley, and was comforted by Mrs Nixon.

Later Mrs Nixon asked Ms Carr: "You know on the Sunday that you spoke to him, did you discuss lying?"

Maxine Carr denies attempting to pervert the course of justice

Ms Carr replied: "No, not on Sunday, on the Monday."

After Ms Carr rang Mr Huntley's mother back she said: "I don't know what to think, Lynda. Something's wrong. Something happened, I don't know what."

Mr Latham then read transcripts of a conversation, again covertly taped, between Mr Huntley at Woodhill Prison and his mother on 23 October 2002, five days after the phone call to Ms Carr.

They talked about what he could remember from the Sunday the girls went missing but Mr Huntley turned the conversation to his state of mind.

He said: "There's nothing I can do if the doctor said I am unfit. Like yesterday, I just shutdown yesterday, mum.

"I do not know why, I cannot stop it. You know it is happening but cannot stop it."

He continued: "You've no idea what that feels like ... you find yourself huddled up next to a toilet on the floor."

Mr Latham said Mr Huntley then began crying.

You know I told you the truth, I do not want you to think that I might have done... I could never hurt anybody Ian Huntley

"The doctor said I am unfit to be interviewed because of things like that."

He added later: "Believe me there's nothing I would love to speak to them, there's so much I want to say to them."

Later in the conversation Mr Huntley suggested his mother was probably wondering if he could hurt somebody during a "shutdown".

Mrs Nixon said: "Yeah, I am thinking."

Mr Huntley said: "No, when I shut down I do not move, I'm just there staring blindly at a wall or something."

He later added: "You know I told you the truth, I do not want you to think that I might have done... I could never hurt anybody."

Suspicious that conversations may be recorded, Mr Huntley threatened that if "they" were listening he would sue them when it was all over.

The court heard Ms Carr made a 21-minute phone call to Mrs Nixon from Holloway Prison on 30 October last year.

The girls went missing in August last year

Ms Carr told Mr Huntley's mother: "It doesn't add up, the times don't add up, because he rang me at my mum's house at 6.40...

"They were going across that car park at like 6.15, they would have seen Ian, this nosebleed incident would have happened.

"He was in the house, so it don't add up, cos, I mean, he didn't tell me anything about the girls, about the girls on that Sunday...

"He didn't even mention the girls to me on that Sunday."

She added: "If you have just seen someone 10 minutes before, wouldn't you say, 'Oh, by the way, I've seen such and such'...

"He didn't even mention them, he didn't even say anything."