Britain’s Most Dangerous Serial Killer Was Imprisoned at 21 Years Old, Now He Will Die in ‘Monster Mansion’

By: Ben Campbell | Published: Feb 07, 2024

A British serial killer who’s been locked up for over four decades will spend the remainder of his life in HMP Wakefield prison, known as “Monster Mansion.”

Robert Maudsley, a convicted killer who once claimed he plans to kill as many pedophiles and rapists as he can, is set to spend the rest of his life locked in a bullet-proof glass box located in the basement of the British prison.

Britain's Most Dangerous Serial Killer

Maudsley, known to some of his fellow inmates as Hannibal the Cannibal, has spent the majority of his adult life in prison.

Old photograph of Robert Maudsley wearing a blue prison shirt

Source: @OranjeSwaeltjie/X

At the young age of 21, he brutally murdered John Farrell, a convicted pedophile and child molester, in 1974. He’s since been called Britain’s most dangerous serial killer for other crimes he’s committed.

Young Maudsley Commits First Murder

Working as a sex worker in London during the ’70s, Maudsley had been on shift one evening when he ran into John Farrell.

Crime scene investigators tape off a section of the woods after a serious crime was committed

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After spending some time with Maudsley, Farrell decided to show him images of children he’d previously molested. After seeing this, Maudsley would later murder Farrell by way of strangulation.

Unfit to Stand Trial

As a young man, Maudsley appears to have suffered from various psychiatric problems. On several occasions, he told doctors voices instructed him to kill his parents.

Courtroom in the Sam B. Hall, Jr. Federal Building, Marshall, Texas

Source: Library of Congress/GetArchive

After murdering Farrell, instead of a prison sentence, Maudsley was sent to Broadmoor Hospital, a psychiatric facility, as doctors deemed him unfit to stand trial.

Maudsley Earns Trip to Wakefield Prison

Just a few years after killing Farrell, however, Maudsley would strike again. One evening in 1977, he and a fellow patient at the psychiatric facility decided to torture and murder David Francis, another convicted child molester.

A man dressed in a black sleeveless shirt holds his face in his hands behind bars in prison

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This time, Maudsley would be forced to stand trial and was convicted of manslaughter, earning himself a life sentence without the possibility of parole at the notorious Wakefield Prison.

Locked up in Monster Mansion

HMP Wakefield is a British prison located in West Yorkshire, England, under the care of His Majesty’s Prison Service.

A man dressed in a light blue shirt sits at a wooden table with his hands in cuffs

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Nicknamed “Monster Mansion,” the building is home to many of the nation’s most dangerous criminals, including convicted rapists to those serving life for serial killings.

Britains Worst Criminals

From its exterior, “Monster Mansion” looks like any other prison in Britain. Yet, within are housed the nation’s most treacherous and downright evil criminals.

A man stands in his prison cell with hands in cuffs as he stares out a small window

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Behind the prison gates lie terrorists, rapists, pedophiles, and serial killers. In total, the prison is thought to house around 750 prisoners spread across five wings.

The Killings Continue

Not long after Maudsley was confined within the walls of Wakefield, he struck again, killing two of his fellow inmates.

A man screams from within his prison cells as he holds onto the gate bars

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Willaim Robert and Salney Darwood became his next victims. Yet, according to reports at the time, Maudsley set out to murder at least seven inmates.

Motivation Behind Maudsley's Actions

A British documentary that premiered on Channel 5 shed insight into the motivation behind Maudsley’s killings.

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According to his nephew, Gavin, who spoke on “HMP Wakefield: Evil Behind Bars”, Maudsley told him he plans to kill as many rapists and pedophiles within the prison as he can.

Sent to Solitary Confinement

Eventually, in 1978, Maudsley was sent to solitary confinement in an attempt to refrain him from murdering any more inmates.

A man dressed in an orange jumpsuit sits alone in a prison cell

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Five years later, a two-unit cell was constructed below the prison, which Maudsley is now confined to. According to reports, it’s around 18ft by 15ft and has large bulletproof windows resembling a glass box.

Buried Alive in a Glass Coffin

Without the chance of parole, Maudsley will likely remain in the glass box until his passing.

A man is held in a giant glass prison cell dressed in a green jumpsuit

Source: @DavidAlanMack/X

Speaking on his situation in a letter, the now 70-year-old Maudsley wrote, “The prison authorities see me as a problem, and their solution has been to put me into solitary confinement and throw away the key, to bury me alive in a concrete coffin.”

A Life of Unbroken Depression

In the same letter, Maudsley goes on to acknowledge and speak about the struggles of spending his life in solitary confinement.

An older man dressed in a green shirt who is visibly upset sits with his head in his hands

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“I am left to stagnate, vegetate, and to regress; left to confront my solitary head-on with people who have eyes but don’t see and who have ears but don’t hear, who have mouths but don’t speak. My life in solitary is one long period of unbroken depression,” he wrote.