Plenty of Fish killer who murdered teacher and sexually assaulted her corpse found guilty of choking prison warden behind bars
Carl Langdell, 27, was jailed for a minimum of 26 years in June
A 'MONSTER' who strangled a young teacher to death in a hotel room and sexually assaulted her corpse was today convicted of choking a prison officer.
Carl Langdell, 27, was jailed for a minimum of 26 years in June after confessing to the horrifying murder of 23-year-old Katie Locke.
A month earlier, while he was on remand in Bedford jail, he attacked prison officer Dean Adamson because he would not open a cell door for him so he could have a cigarette and a cup of tea.
He swore at Mr Adamson before giving him a black eye, grabbing his throat and then getting him in a headlock.
The prison officer spent four months off work with tendon and ligament damage, Luton Crown Court was told.
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In the witness box, Mr Adamson said on Wednesday May 4 he was working upstairs in the office on F-wing, which is for vulnerable prisoners. Langdell, who was housed on C-wing, was downstairs in the F-wing workshop.
He said: "He (Langdell) used to go to a cell with other two prisoners for a cigarette and tea break, but it was locked.
"One occupant was off for a legal visit and the other guy wanted privacy to go through court papers.
"He shouted up: 'Get this door open downstairs'. I said: 'There are five other cells open. You can have a cigarette in one of them'.
"He shouted: 'Get this f***ing door you thick c***'."
After he shouted and swore again at his colleague Deborah Parkes allegedly saying: 'Get down here you f***ing bitch and open this door'.
They then decided to go down and talk to him.
Mr Adamson, who has been a prison officer for 11 years, added: "At the bottom of the stairs he walked aggressively to me and me punched me in the right eye. He put his hands around my throat and rammed me against a wall, slamming me into a corner.
"He was making snarling angry noises and didn't speak. He got me in a headlock and tried to choke me."
He added: "I was thinking he was going to kill me."
Under cross-examination by David Smithet, Mr Adamson denied he had "over-egged the pudding" in his account to the jury.
Prosecutor Brian Russell told the jury of seven women and five men that Mrs Parkes had operated her alarm to call colleagues for assistance.
A 70-year-old teacher Clive Stringer also launched himself at the prisoner to help free the officer. Other prison officers arrived and restrained Langdell, he said.
The jury were not told that Langdell had admitted murdering Katie. They were simply told he was a serving prisoner.
Langdell, from Cheshunt, Hertfordshire, did not give evidence. He is serving his life sentence at Frankland Prison in Durham.
He observed the start of proceedings via a video link but chose not to travel to the court for his defence.
He denied causing actual bodily harm to prison officer Dean Adamson in Bedford prison on May 4 last year, but was convicted by the jury of five men and seven women who had not been told of his murder conviction.
Recorder Steven Gasztowicz QC passed a consecutive sentence of three years that Langdell must serve on top of the 26 years he is already serving.
The judge said: "He assaulted a prison officer because he could not get his own way.
"He hurled abuse at the prison officer and a colleague."
"He punched the officer in the face, got him in headlock and tightened the grip. Both officers said it was the worst incident in their prison careers.
"He attempted to strangle the prison officer. Had the alarm not been raised the consequences could have been much more serious.
"It was an offence against someone in public service doing a difficult job dealing with difficult and dangerous people.
"The defendant has shown no remorse."
Langdell, who had lied to Katie about being a lawyer, murdered her on their first date on Christmas Eve 2015 after they had met on the Plenty of Fish online dating website.
He wrapped her body in a duvet and dumped her near a skip in the grounds of the four-star Theobolds Park hotel at Cheshunt, Hertfordshire.
Katie, who had graduated from Southampton University, taught history and politics at Cardinal Pole school in Hackney, London. She lived in Buckhurst Hill, Essex.
Nine months before the murder he confessed to a mental health worker that he had fantasies about cutting a girl's throat, seeing her naked and having sex with her dead body.
He had been given an eight month sentence suspended for two years for making threats to kill a community nurse in March 2015.
After the murder Langdell called his mother and told her he was a "monster".
Mr Martin Field , branch secretary of the Prison Officers' Association in Bedford, said: "The encouraging thing that every single case of an assault on a prison officer should be treated the same as an assault on a police officer.
"Unfortunately not all cases end in this manner, due to bad handling by the authorities and many prison officers who are carrying out a very dangerous job are being assaulted and there is no comeback.
"By giving Mr Langdell a consecutive sentence, and the maximum he could, this judge has sent out a message that can and should be protected."