The man who plotted to kidnap ITV presenter Holly Willoughby has been caught with pictures of her in his prison cell. Gavin Plumb’s collection was found by prison officers hidden under a mattress. According to a source, Plumb, who gathered the images from magazines, “is still obsessed with Holly”.
The images were found during a search at HMP Long Lartin, Worcs, where Plumb, 39, is currently serving 15 years for his plan to attack Willoughby. It is understood that he has lost his privileges as a result of this.
The source told The Sun: “Plumb is an absolutely vile individual with a very weird aura around him. Plumb is still completely obsessed and completely remorseless.
“He was asked about his crimes once, and he replied, ‘Who wouldn’t want to kidnap Holly and rape her?’ He was really smug about it.”
Plumb, who was jailed in July 2024 for soliciting Holly’s murder, kidnap, and the commission of rape, had his cell searched after his behaviour caused concerns.
The source added: “Plumb was going round and collecting TV magazines from other inmates on his landing and scouring them for pictures of Holly.”
They went on: “Someone might have told guards so they spun [searched] his cell and found a folder bulging with images of Holly which they destroyed. No one was that surprised because Plumb makes no attempt to hide his obsession with her.”
Willoughby quit This Morning after the ordeal, stating: “I have to make this decision for me and my family.”
Shadow Justice Secretary Nick Timothy said: “A man who has been jailed for such obsessive crimes should not be able to obtain images of his victim behind bars. From drugs and weapons to obscene material, there is a huge problem with contraband in prisons.
“Instead of releasing criminals early and introducing soft sentences, Labour must get a grip on security.”
A Prison Service spokesperson said: “These prisoners’ crimes were despicable and it is right they are behind bars where they belong. We are cracking down on drugs, drones and illicit items with stronger physical security and better staffing at Long Lartin.”
Holly’s spokeswoman has been contacted.