MP demands police killer is returned to prison

David Taylor said James Hurley, who was convicted of murder, must "be back behind bars"

An MP has demanded that a man convicted of killing an off-duty police officer during an armed bank robbery be returned to prison.

In 1988, James Hurley was acting as the getaway driver at the Barclays bank in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, when 28-year-old PC Frank Mason was shot dead.

David Taylor, the Labour MP for the town, has written to the justice secretary asking her to review his release.

Hurley left prison in January and the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said he was on licence with "strict conditions".

In his letter addressed to Shabana Mahmood, Taylor recounted how PC Mason had been "shot in the back by coward Hurley".

"I am deeply disturbed and disgusted that this evil murderer and fugitive has been cleared for release," he said.

"The murder was unforgivable. The fact he then escaped from custody six years later by threatening a police officer with a knife says more about the type of man Hurley is."

The letter concluded: "Hurley took a life, he was given life; he has not seen justice served yet.

"He must be back behind bars."

PC Frank Mason was off-duty when he intervened in the armed robbery at the Barclays branch in Hemel Hempstead

In May 1989, Hurley was one of three men given a life sentence for murder, alongside Charles McGhee and Perrie Wharrie.

He escaped custody during a prison transfer in 1994 and was on the run before he was arrested in the Netherlands in 2007.

Hurley later appealed his conviction, but in 2016, the Court of Appeal rejected his claims that he was unaware a gun would be used in the robbery and that he had nothing to do with PC Mason's murder.

Hurley told the Court of Appeal that he did not know a gun was being used in the armed robbery

The Parole Board directed Hurley's release after a hearing in October.

A spokesperson said: "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.

"Parole reviews are undertaken thoroughly and with extreme care. Protecting the public is our number one priority."

The MoJ told the BBC: "Our thoughts remain with the friends and family of Frank Mason following the independent Parole Board's decision.

"He is now on licence for the rest of his life, with strict conditions and intensive probation supervision after he is released."

The spokesperson said he faced an immediate return to prison if he failed to comply with the release terms.