Transgender woman Vicky Thompson found dead at Armley jail

A transgender woman who told her friends she would kill herself if she was sent to a male prison has been found dead in jail.

Vicky Thompson, 21, was being held at Armley, Leeds, where she was pronounced dead on Friday.

Friends of Thompson, who was born male but had identified as female since her mid-teens, said she had asked to be sent to a female prison.

An investigation into her death has been launched, the Prison Service said.
Thompson, from Keighley, West Yorkshire, was handed a 12-month jail term in August which was suspended for 24 months.

The BBC understands she later breached the terms of the sentence, and was remanded in custody at Bradford Crown Court.

Her solicitor, Mohammed Hussain, said he had advised the judge she was "essentially a woman" and asked for her to be sent to New Hall women's prison, near Wakefield.

BBC News