He was imprisoned at HMP Full Sutton in East Yorkshire and had ‘do not resuscitate’ order in place
A man convicted of murdering Shirley Banks and suspected of murdering missing estate agent Suzy Lamplugh received good care in prison but refused treatment for health conditions before his death, the Ombudsman has found. John Cannan was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1989 and died aged 70 at HMP Full Sutton.
Mr Cannan “made unwise decisions to refuse healthcare treatments despite being warned of the risks”, the clinical reviewer for the case said. The results of the report were published in July this year.
At an inquest held on March 27, 2025, the Coroner concluded that Mr Cannan died of natural causes in November last year. His cause of death was a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm.
Mr Cannan had been sentenced to life imprisonment at Exeter Crown Court for the kidnap and murder of Shirley Banks, who vanished on a shopping trip in Bristol in 1987. Her body was sadly found six months later.
He also received two life sentences for raping a woman the previous year. And he was jailed for 14 years for the attempted kidnapping at gunpoint of a Bristol businesswoman the night before Ms Banks was taken.
He was also the main suspect in the disappearance of Suzy Lamplugh. At the time of his sentencing, he had already been interviewed twice by police in connection with the enquiry.
Estate agent Ms Lamplugh vanished after going to meet a client in Fulham on July 28, 1986. He was known only as “Mr Kipper” and was never traced.
Mr Cannan was nicknamed ‘Kipper’ during an earlier prison sentence, the BBC reported. Mr Cannan always denied any involvement.
The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman said Mr Cannan had a DNACPR (do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation) in place. The clinical reviewer was “satisfied that he had the mental capacity to make such decisions”.
While there was a delay to the emergency response “because the healthcare gate was incorrectly double locked”, this did not affect the outcome for Mr Cannan. HMP Full Sutton told the Ombudsman “this was a one-off mistake”.
The clinical reviewer made no recommendations. She concluded that Mr Cannan was “managed with respect and cared for by confident, competent staff”.
At the time of Mr Cannan’s death, Practice Plus Group was responsible for healthcare, having taken over in June 2024. However, because the Ombudsman made no recommendations Practice Plus Group declined to comment.
Hull Daily Mail also reached out to the Prison Service. It declined to comment.