Willington double murderer attacked detective at HMP Frankland

David Taylor, formerly of Oak Avenue, was on Thursday (June 18) convicted of the murder of child killer Kyle Bevan.

Taylor, 64, and fellow killers Mark Fellows and Lee Newell teamed up to stab Bevan 25 times at HMP Wakefield in West Yorkshire last November.

David Taylor. (Image: WEST YORKSHIRE POLICE)

A week ahead of his trial in February he admitted the murder of Alisha Apostoloff-Boyarin, 24, from Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, telling Manchester Crown Court: “Yeah, I’m guilty”.

Alisha was reported missing by her family in February 2022.

Alisha Apostoloff-Boyarin. (Image: GMP)

He was also convicted by a jury in December of the attempted murder of Detective Constable Darren Bratby, whose chest he plunged an improvised weapon into in an interview room at HMP Frankland in Durham in July 2024.

The detective survived the stabbing and spent four days in hospital.

And on Thursday he was convicted at Leeds Crown Court of Kyle Bevan’s murder. Bevan was jailed in 2023 for the murder of his partner’s two-year-old daughter Lola James.

Kyle Bevan. (Image: DYFED-POWYS POLICE)

Jurors in the trial at Leeds Crown Court were told of Taylor’s recent convictions for murder and attempted murder, but fuller details can be reported today.

He could face a whole-life order with no possibility of release.

The attack on DC Bratby came after Taylor, who was on remand at Frankland, contacted Greater Manchester Police through his solicitor.

He claimed to have new information about the whereabouts of Ms Apostoloff-Boyarin, whose disappearance in February 2022 led to a murder investigation.

Taylor maintained she was alive, the court heard, and was living in different parts of the country.

Taylor’s request for a police visit was a ruse.

When DC Bratby arrived for the meeting at HMP Frankland, Taylor plunged an improvised metal weapon into his chest.

(Image: Stuart Boulton)

Despite a partially collapsed lung, DC Bratby and a colleague managed to subdue and restrain Taylor.

He denied intending to kill the detective and said he “lost it” and exploded in anger at being “stitched up” by GMP for a murder he said he did not commit.

Born in Glossop and previously living in Ashton-under-Lyne, Taylor described himself during the attempted murder trial as “an old fashioned villain” with a long criminal history.

He was convicted of aggravated burglary and possession of an offensive weapon in 2007 and was handed an indeterminate sentence of Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP).

Taylor was released on licence in 2013, claiming to have rehabilitated through studies in humanist psychology and counselling, as well as earning a foundation degree from the Open University.

In March 2022, police found rifle ammunition at his home on Oak Avenue in Willington, leading to his recall to prison.

Police in Oak Avenue, Willington, as part of the murder inquiry in 2024. (Image: Sarah Caldecott)

Footage of the attack on DC Bratby was shown in court, showing a calm Taylor suddenly leap to his feet from his chair and stab the officer.

Taylor later told prison staff he held no ill will toward them, saying: “I don’t have a problem with any of yous. It’s that f*****. He has given me 99 years.”

He also referred to Greater Manchester Police as “scumbags” who had tried to set him up for murder.

In a later conversation with the prison governor, Taylor confessed: “OK, so it was a planned attack.

“I’m going to tell you straight.

“It was a planned attack and I went to f****** kill him.

“There’s no two ways about it.

“It was orchestrated by me and the target was central mass.

Mark Fellows, who joined Taylor in murdering Kyle Bevan. (Image: GREATER MANCHESTER POLICE)

Lee Newell, who joined Taylor in murdering Kyle Bevan. (Image: WEST YORKSHIRE POLICE)

“That’s it.”

He also revealed that his preferred target had been a sergeant who did not attend the interview.

Taylor is be sentenced at a later date for the murder of Ms Apostoloff-Boyarin and the attempted murder of DC Bratby.