A violent criminal has today been sentenced to a Whole Life Order following two murders and the attempted murder of a GMP detective.
David Taylor 63, of Oak Avenue, County Durham, was sentenced today at Leeds Crown Court for the murders of Alisha Apostoloff-Boyarin in 2022, and Kyle Bevan, who he killed in HMP Wakefield in November 2025 alongside two other inmates.
He additionally attempted to murder a GMP detective in prison in 2024, during a premeditated attack while in prison awaiting trial for Alisha’s murder.
On 2 February 2022, Alisha was reported as a missing person from Ashton-Under-Lyne.
Officers were alerted after Alisha’s grandmother phoned to report no one had seen or heard from Alisha for a couple of weeks.
Initial enquiries found that Alisha appeared to travel from Manchester to Durham and then back to Manchester.
Alisha was last seen travelling in a Volkswagen Passat with Taylor. They had been together for a number of days at that point, having first met towards the end of 2021, after being put in contact by a mutual friend.
Alisha was first picked up by Taylor on 14 January 2022, where they travelled to Durham, before heading to Chapel-en-le-frith campsite and then back to Durham on 20 January.
Taylor and Alisha travel back to Chapel-en-le-frith on 22 January 2022 in the same vehicle.
It was during this time it is believe Alisha to have been murdered. Alisha has not been seen since and her body has never been recovered.
Police are continuing to make enquiries to ensure Alisha’s body is recovered, and to be able to give her the proper burial that she deserves.
Taylor was subsequently arrested on suspicion of murder in March 2022.
Taylor initially denied murdering Alisha but later pleaded guilty in February this year
As part of GMP’s enquiries into Alisha’s murder, two of our officers visited Taylor for a meeting in July 2024.
Taylor had requested an interview with our officers while he was in custody at HMP Frankland, stating that he had information that would help us locate Alisha.
Seconds after they came back from a break during the interview, Taylor lunged at the officers with a makeshift shank.
One officer – DC Bratby – received a serious injury that narrowly missed his heart.
Despite receiving this potentially life-threatening injury, DC Bratby and his fellow officer were able to fend off Taylor before he was restrained by prison officers. Both officers have since resumed their duties within GMP’s Major Incident Team.
Taylor was found guilty of the attempted murder of the detective at Manchester Crown Court in December 2025.
Today marks the culmination of complex and thorough investigations that has seen the involvement of three police forces.
West Yorkshire Police managed the investigation for the prison murder, while GMP assisted Durham Police following the prison stabbing of DC Bratby.
