BABES in the Wood killer Russell Bishop told cell-mates one of his victims was still alive during the search... and he went back and strangled her just before she was found.

The monster, 52, molested and strangled nine-year-old Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway in Brighton in 1986 but was cleared of the double murder.

But last week he was jailed for life with a minimum of 36 years after being found guilty of murdering Nicola and Karen.

In between, he was caged for life for the kidnap, sexual assault and attempted murder of a different seven-year-old girl.

Now a cell-mate who grew close to him during this stint in prison has told how Bishop confessed to the double murder years before he was finally caught.

The lag said Bishop, who joined the search for the girls, told him he returned to the bodies during the search because he feared Karen was still alive.

The twisted paedophile told his jail mate at HMP Full Sutton her skin was “very bright” so he strangled her again, believing she was still alive, just before she was found.

Speaking for the first time, the lag said: “Bishop then told me about the ‘Babes in the Woods’ murders and how he sexually assaulted the girls before strangling them and leaving them.

“He didn’t say much about the details of the case but mentioned one moment after he murdered them which shocked me.

“He told me how we was taking part in a search for Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway.

“During the search, he realised that Karen might be still alive so went over to where the bodies were.

“He told me how Nicola was dead, but he thought Karen was still alive.

“To prevent her from telling police about him, he put his arms around Karen’s neck and he strangled her to ensure she was dead.

“Every time he talked about strangling the two girls he could never look me in the eye.

“He said he was remorseful every single day and that he deserved to be inside for what he had done to them.

“I remember him saying ‘because I have taken a life, I deserve to be in here for life’.

“Bishop said he was very young and had a messed up head at the time because his partner kept throwing him out leaving him extremely depressed.

“He said that he regularly have nightmares and said that there wasn’t a night that would go by that he wouldn’t think about what he had done to the young girls.

“He even shed a tear for the girls but tried to hide it.”

In October 1986 Nicola and Karen, both nine, went missing from their homes in Moulsecoomb, Brighton.

The next day their bodies were found huddled together at Wild Park.

In December 1987 Bishop was cleared of their murders at Lewes Crown Court, but three years later he was convicted of a seven-year-old’s attempted murder, kidnapping and indecent assault.

This year he went on trial again for the murders of Nicola and Karen after the Court of Appeal gave the CPS authority to quash the acquittals.

He was found guilty on Tuesday after just two hours of deliberation following an agonising 32 year wait for the families.

But a former prison pal said Bishop confided in him after the first failed trial, after he had been jailed for the kidnap.

The source, who was in a cell near Bishop for four years in the late-2000s, said: “The first week I arrived I was really frightened and never came out of my cell.

“But Russell was really pleasant and friendly and he made me feel extremely comfortable in prison.

“Three months into my time at HMP Full Sutton, he told me that he was serving his time for the kidnap and attempted murder of a man.

“But after six months he told me it was a seven-year-old girl and I felt slightly uncomfortable and immediately felt extremely sorry for the victims’ family.

“However, I was still serving my prison sentence and I needed to have a prison buddy whilst serving my time because the place was full of nasty criminals I was extremely frightened of.

“We were constantly laughing and joking about things and we were good friends so I never doubted him for a minute.

“You could say we were like brothers. We shared a lot of our life stories and secrets.

“I felt very close to him and thought he was someone I could trust.

“It was absolutely disgusting what he did and I really felt sorry for Karen and Nicola’s family.”