Colin Pitchfork parole hearing should be public, says MP

Colin Pitchfork was released from prison in 2021 after 33 years

The next parole hearing for double child killer Colin Pitchfork should be heard in public, according to an MP.

Pitchfork was jailed in 1988 for raping and murdering 15-year-olds Lynda Mann and Dawn Ashworth in Leicestershire.

He was released in 2021 but recalled to prison two months later after he was seen approaching young women.

South Leicestershire MP Alberto Costa said given the "grave national concern" people should be informed about how the Parole Board reaches their decision.

The 62-year-old is due to be considered for release again in December.

Dawn Ashworth and Lynda Mann were raped and murdered by Pitchfork

There was public outcry last year when the board deemed Pitchfork suitable for release, and former justice secretary Robert Buckland challenged the decision.

After he was freed, he is understood to have approached women on multiple occasions while out on walks from the bail hostel where he was living.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said he had not committed any further offences. Recalling him was thought to have been taken as a preventative measure due to the concerning pattern in his behaviour.

Since then, the government has announced reforms to the parole system, which include giving ministers powers to block the release of serious offenders.

Changes in the law to allow public hearings were also introduced in July.

South Leicestershire MP Alberto Costa has campaigned against Pitchfork's release

Mr Costa has written to the new justice secretary, Brandon Lewis, to request the parole hearing for Pitchfork be heard publicly.

He said: "I believe given the special circumstances in Pitchfork's case, whereby there is a grave national concern over his release, that his hearing should be heard in public.

"My confidence... has been significantly shaken by the Parole Board's decision to release Pitchfork last year; concerns that were well founded given his speedy recall to prison a matter of weeks later."

A Parole Board spokesman said: "We can confirm the parole review of Colin Pitchfork has been referred to the Parole Board by the Secretary of State for Justice and is following standard processes. A hearing is expected to take place in or after December 2022."