'Monster' dies in prison after terrorising children

A "monster" died in prison four years after he was jailed for horrific sexual abuse. Malcolm Vickery, 76, died at Bridgend's HMP Parc in 2023, according to a newly-released prisons ombudsman report which has identified a failing in staff's response to his cardiac arrest.

Vickery, from Risca in Caerphilly county, was sentenced in April 2019 after being found guilty by a Cardiff Crown Court jury of six counts of rape, three of attempted rape, five of indecent assault, and two of sexual assault. He carried out the attacks against two children in the 1970s and 80s. Sentencing Judge Rhys Rowlands said: “For one man to have caused so much harm and suffering over the years is truly appalling.”

In a statement which was read out in court the first victim said: “The monster has taken my childhood and womanhood away from me.” The court heard she was in primary school when the sexual abuse started and she had to undergo treatment for a sexually-transmitted infection. “I have lived with the effects of what that monster did to me,” she said. “I have scars in my head that will never heal.”

The second complainant was a teenager when she was subjected to what she described as “horrific” sexual abuse. “The last 30 years have felt like a dirty secret,” said the woman, who had battled post-traumatic stress disorder and borderline personality disorder after the attacks.

Vickery, of St Mary Street in Risca, was sentenced to 25 years in jail. The report by ombudsman Adrian Usher states he died of heart disease on March 11, 2023. An independent clinical reviewer concluded the prison's healthcare team had "displayed a caring and compassionate approach" to his care. But they also found the adrenaline given to Vickery in the emergency response was the wrong dose for a suspected cardiac arrest.

"The correct adrenaline dose was not available in the emergency bag so healthcare staff gave a lower dose used for severe allergic reactions rather than cardiac arrests," wrote Mr Usher. He recommended the prison ensure all emergency response equipment is checked regularly.

In his sentencing remarks in 2019 Judge Rowlands commended the victims for their courage in giving evidence on Vickery's "appalling depravity". The judge said there was doubt over how long a custodial sentence Vickery would be able to serve because of his poor health. He added it would be up to the home secretary to decide if the defendant would be released on “compassionate grounds”. An inquest in January this year found Vickery died of natural causes.