Double child murderer Colin Pitchfork may be released from prison tomorrow. The Parole Board is poised to decide whether or not to free the sickened 63-year-old, who raped and murdered 15-year-old school girls Lynda Mann and Dawn Ashworth in the 1980s.
The depraved killer was released from prison for the first time in 2021 but jailed only two months later after approaching a lone woman and breaching his bail conditions.
Pitchfork was nearly released again in June, but South Leicestershire MP Alberto Costa lobbied the Government to block the move. The victims’ families still live in his constituency.
The Parole Board started weighing up whether to re-release Pitchfork in October and November and according to MailOnline Mr Costa’s office expects to receive a decision in the next 24 hours.
Mr Costa, who has been an MP since 2015, asked the PM in October: “Does the Prime Minister agree with me that men who rape and brutally murder young women, as Mr Pitchfork did to Dawn Ashworth and Linda Mann in my constituency, does he agree that generally – as a point of principle – these sexual offenders should remain in prison for most of their natural lives?”
The Prime Minister replied: “The public should be confident that murderers and rapists will be kept behind bars for as long as is necessary to keep the public safe and that’s why we are reforming the parole system.”
Lynda was brutally killed by Pitchfork in Narborough in November 1983, before he murdered Dawn in the village of Enderby in July 1986. The cold-blooded killer was arrested in September 1987 and given a life sentence with a minimum of 30 years. It was later reduced to 28 years on appeal.
The sadistic madman was also convicted of sexually assaulting two other girls, whom he threatened with a screwdriver and a knife, and was the first person convicted using DNA evidence.
A Parole Board spokesperson said: “An oral hearing has been listed for the parole review of Colin Pitchfork and is scheduled to take place in 2023. Parole Board decisions are solely focused on what risk a prisoner could represent to the public if released and whether that risk is manageable in the community.
“A panel will carefully examine a huge range of evidence, including details of the original crime, and any evidence of behaviour change, as well as explore the harm done and impact the crime has had on the victims.
“Members read and digest hundreds of pages of evidence and reports in the lead-up to an oral hearing. Evidence from witnesses including probation officers, psychiatrists and psychologists, officials supervising the offender in prison as well as victim personal statements are then given at the hearing.
“The prisoner and witnesses are then questioned at length during the hearing which often lasts a full day or more. Parole reviews are undertaken thoroughly and with extreme care. Protecting the public is our number one priority.”
