Memorials unveiled to two brave Yorkshire policemen killed by 'Phantom of the Forest' gunman during manhunt in the 1980s

They were shot while trying to apprehend Barry Prudom, an SAS veteran and obsessive survivalist nicknamed ‘the Phantom of the Forest’ who went on the run in 1982, hiding in forests and woods and taking unsuspecting families hostage in their homes. A third North Yorkshire Police constable was also injured, but lived.

PC Haigh’s memorial is at the Norwood Edge picnic spot in Beckwithshaw near Harrogate, where he had gone in his patrol car on a summer’s day after reports of poaching in the Washburn Valley. He was found dead after he failed to respond to his radio, the false details of Prudom and his car registration number on a clipboard beside him.

Sergeant Winter’s memorial is at Old Malton Village Green, where he was killed as the hunt for Prudom entered its final stages. Families of both men attended the ceremonies along with serving officers.

Police Memorial Trust chair Michael Winner said: “The Police Memorial Trust are honoured to place our memorials to the service, bravery and sacrifice of PC David Haigh and Sergeant David Winter here in North Yorkshire.

“It is absolutely right that the local landscape should change just a little; this is a fitting place for those who live, work or visit the memorial to remember the officers for generations to come.”

Chief Superintendent Catherine Clarke was at the Norwood Edge ceremony. She said: “These memorials are poignant tributes to PC Haigh and Sgt Winter, in recognition of their extraordinary courage and sacrifice.

“We must never forget their service, and that of police colleagues across the country who have tragically given their lives to protect the public.

“It was a great honour for us to attend the unveiling ceremonies, and we’re very grateful to The Police Memorial Trust for their support in providing the memorial stones.”

Barry Prudom, born in Leeds in 1944, was an outdoorsman and firearms enthusiast who had worked on oil rigs around the word. He evaded capture for 18 days, hiding out in spots such as Dalby Forest, before he was eventually surrounded near Malton Tennis Club and took his own life. He was tracked by an SAS instructor whose survival courses he had attended.

The car he had fled from PC Haigh’s murder in was later found burned out in the estate village of Ledsham, near Castleford, and Prudom then headed to Lincolnshire, where he tied up an elderly woman in her home. In Nottinghamshire, he broke into the house of a couple in their 50s, killing the man, George Luckett, before stealing their car and driving to Dalby Forest.

He was stopped by dog handler PC Ken Oliver during a routine check near Scarborough, and opened fire with a pistol, hitting the officer in the face. The dog attacked Prudom, allowing Oliver to escape, and he survived despite being hit with seven bullets. Prudom fled back into the forest after smashing the constable’s police radio.

Prudom’s identity was made when it was realised he had given PC Haigh his correct date of birth, which was checked against an outstanding arrest warrant.

Sergeant Winter died after he and PC Mick Wood challenged Prudom in Old Malton just 200 yards from the village police station. Winter was shot at point blank range and Prudom also fired at a Guardian journalist and a BBC news crew.

Prudom evaded hundreds of officers and an RAF search helicopter before ‘Jungle’ Eddie McGee, who ran a survival training school near Harrogate and whose sons were police officers, joined the hunt near Malton. The town was sealed off and the ‘Siege of Malton’ began.

Prudom took a family hostage, eating a meal in their home and hiding there for 11 hours before leaving without harming them. He was located in a makeshift shelter near the tennis courts and although police opened fire, an inquest concluded he had fired the fatal shot himself.