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Child killer Ian Huntley's "cowardly" letter to his daughter after she attempted to learn more about his crimes has resurfaced following his death. Huntley, who murdered schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in August 2002, was targeted in a brutal prison assault using a metal bar at HMP Frankland in County Durham last week. He was reportedly discovered lying in a pool of his own blood with severe head injuries and was airlifted to hospital, where he was confirmed to have died earlier this morning.

The 52-year-old's daughter Samantha Bryan, who didn't learn of his identity until she was 14, requested to visit him behind bars years later in a bid to obtain more information about the murders. She was rebuffed with a short and formal letter, stating: "Given the probable length of my future and your current motives, I doubt there will be enough time for a significant shift in circumstances in order for us to ever meet."

Huntley added: "You are still my daughter for whom I have much love. With Love, Ian."

Ms Bryan slammed her father as a "pitiful, twisted, manipulative coward" in a subsequent interview with The Sun.

She said: "There's so many other things I could call him. I feel contempt. His letter has left me with even more questions than I had before. He might be ill but I don't know for sure given he's written about the probable length of his future.

"I don't know what that means. But surely if he is sick, you'd want to give some answers - you'd have nothing left to lose. Or maybe he is referring to the length of his sentence."

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Ms Bryan's mother Katie, who was in a relationship with Huntley when she was 15, also told the newspaper that she thought he got what he deserved and hoped he would burn in hell.

The 52-year-old former caretaker killed 10-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman after they left a family barbecue to buy sweets in Soham, Cambridgeshire, on August 4, 2002.

He then dumped their bodies in an irrigation ditch near an RAF base around 10 miles from their home.

Suspicions were raised around Huntley after he gave detailed media interviews following the two girls' disappearance.

He faced two counts of murder and received two life sentences with a minimum term of 40 years.