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Wednesday, 29 December, 1999, 19:13 GMT

Hindley back in prison

Moors murderer Myra Hindley is back in prison after undergoing a series of hospital tests following a collapse.

Hindley, a heavy smoker, was thought to have suffered a stroke and was kept in hospital on Tuesday night. She was returned to Highpoint Prison, Suffolk, on Wednesday.

Staff at West Suffolk Hospital, Bury St Edmunds, would not reveal the results of a series of tests carried out on the killer but said her condition was not life-threatening.

Hindley, 57, has been in prison since 1966 when she was jailed for life for the murder of Lesley Ann Downey, aged 10, and 17-year-old Edward Evans.

She was found semi-conscious in a chair at Highpoint on Tuesday afternoon.

Hindley was kept in a single room by hospital and prison nursing staff away from other patients while medical tests were carried out.

'I hope she suffers'

Hindley was jailed with her lover Ian Brady for a series of child killings called the Moors murders because most of the bodies were buried on Saddleworth Moor, near Manchester.

Both were found guilty of killing Lesley Ann Downey and Edward Evans.

Brady was additionally convicted of murdering 12-year-old John Kilbride.

Both later confessed to killing Pauline Reade, 16, and Keith Bennett, 12, and burying their bodies on the moors.

Pauline's body was discovered by police in the 1980s following a visit to the moors by Brady and Hindley, but Keith's body has never been found.

His mother, Winnie Johnson, has called on Hindley to let her know where her son's body is as soon as possible.

"Tell me something which will help me find my son, it's the only thing I have to live for," she said.

Mrs Johnson, from Manchester, added that she hoped Hindley suffered before she died.

Health problems

In recent years Hindley has been suffering various health problems, including the heart disease angina.

She was warned by doctors earlier this year that she would have a fatal heart attack if she carried on smoking heavily.

She also has the brittle bone disease osteoporosis, high blood pressure and a fractured thigh which has failed to heal properly.

Brady was taken to hospital on Monday after collapsing while on hunger strike.

He has been refusing food for three months in protest at his treatment at Ashworth high security hospital on Merseyside.

Brady is now back behind bars after undergoing a series of tests.

Related to this story:
Myra Hindley: A hate figure (29 Dec 99 | UK)
Brady collapses after hunger strike (27 Dec 99 | UK)

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