David Tilley

David Tilley, a 70-year-old man, was convicted of serious child sex offences committed against a young girl in Tiverton, Devon, during the 1990s and 2000s. He began grooming the victim when she was just five years old, subjecting her to countless sexual assaults over the following decade. The abuse continued until the girl was approximately 11 or 12 years old, at which point Tilley bribed her with £5 to ensure her silence.

The victim did not disclose the offences until 2015, when she confided in her husband. This led to Tilley's arrest and subsequent trial. He denied seven counts of indecent assault or gross indecency and one count of sexual intercourse with a girl under 13, but a jury found him guilty on all charges. On 26 April 2018, Tilley was sentenced to 14 years' imprisonment, with an additional one-year extended licence period in the community.

While serving his sentence at HMP Isle of Wight, Tilley, who suffered from multiple chronic health conditions and mild dementia, contracted Covid-19 in September 2021. An investigation by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) later revealed significant failures in his care, including inadequate management of infection risks, missed clinical opportunities, and gaps in healthcare practices. Despite being assessed as at moderate risk of serious illness from Covid-19 in April 2020, no shielding options were discussed with him, and he declined two vaccinations without proper documentation of the reasons or risks explained.

On 15 September 2021, Tilley reported symptoms suggestive of Covid-19, but a nurse dismissed them and did not arrange testing. Following a prison outbreak on 21 September, he was excluded from mass testing despite his deteriorating condition. He suffered two falls in the preceding week—on 18 September and 23 September—leaving him seriously ill. He was transferred to St Mary’s Hospital, where he tested positive for Covid-19, was moved to critical care, and died on 26 September 2021.

The PPO report concluded that the standard of care at HMP Isle of Wight was not reasonable, citing failures in symptom assessment, monitoring of head injuries from falls, management of long-term conditions, vaccine refusal documentation, and clinical record-keeping. However, no formal recommendations were made due to subsequent national policy changes since 2021. An inquest on 11 August 2025 determined that Tilley died from natural causes, with Covid-19 as the medical cause.