Serial killer Rose West is reportedly "on her last legs" and becoming increasingly frail after more than three decades in prison. The 72-year-old is said to have been placed on a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (PEEP) because of her worsening health, which would require extra help to evacuate in the event of an emergency.
West has spent 31 years in jail and is currently held at HMP New Hall, a high-security prison in West Yorkshire. She was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1995 after helping her husband Fred West murder at least nine people between 1967 and 1987 at their Gloucester home.
Health Deterioration and Emergency Plan
An insider told The Sun that West is in a "really bad way" and can barely move, adding that having a PEEP in place shows "what a poor state her health is in." The source said: "People have been talking about how West is on her last legs and does not have long left because of her health. She cannot leave her wing and is also resigned to dying in jail."
A PEEP is a protocol designed to ensure prison staff can safely evacuate inmates whose disabilities or health conditions may hinder their ability to leave the building during a fire or similar crisis. The insider said West "cannot really move unaided and has to be protected by staff," and that she rarely goes outside or takes part in activities like yoga, adding: "All she can do really is watch telly and read as she rots away in her cell."
Prison Transfer and Diet Concerns
West has been held at New Hall since 2019, following her transfer from Low Newton prison in Durham. Fred West, who buried many of their victims at their "House of Horrors," took his own life in 1995 while awaiting trial at the age of 53.
West's deteriorating health emerged as prisoners at New Hall raised concerns about weight gain while incarcerated, according to the Mirror. A recent report revealed inmates transferred from other establishments found the meals provided were excessively "carb heavy." Representatives from the Independent Monitoring Board reported that the catering manager had been instructed to develop "healthier and more nutritionally balanced meals."
West was reportedly previously placed on a diet by prison medical staff after being classified as "dangerously overweight," having reached 18 stone while maintaining an unhealthy regime of cake, crisps and chocolate in custody. A Prison Service spokesman told the Mirror: "Rose West's crimes were horrific, and she will rightly spend the rest of her life behind bars."
