Victims of taxi rapist John Worboys welcome review of his release
Serial sex offender John Worboys was convicted of 19 offences relating to 12 victims but has been linked to many more crimes.
Sunday 14 January 2018 14:20, UK
Victims of rapist John Worboys have welcomed news that the Justice Secretary will do "everything he can" to keep him in prison.
Specialist abuse lawyer Richard Scorer, who is representing some of Worboys' victims, said: "Our clients are pleased that their fears and concerns are finally being recognised.
"We believe this manipulative, dangerous serial sex offender is still a danger to the public and releasing him now would put many women at risk."
Sixty-year-old black cab driver Worboys was jailed indefinitely in 2009, with a minimum term of eight years, for drugging and sexually assaulting women passengers.
He was convicted of 19 offences relating to 12 victims but is suspected to have been linked to 102 complaints in total.
A Parole Board decision to approve his release later this month, following his minimum eight-year term, has led to a moral outcry.
Conservative Party Chairman Brandon Lewis has said the Justice Secretary David Gauke will do everything he can to keep Warboys in prison.
In a statement a Ministry of Justice spokesperson confirmed lawyers had been asked to make an assessment on the merits of an intervention.
"The Secretary of State commissioned advice last week about the plausibility and potential success of a judicial review; he is only minded to move forward if there is a reasonable prospect of success," they said.
Kim Harrison, a lawyer representing 11 of Warboys victims, told Sky News: "My thoughts are that victims have not been properly consulted about the decision to release him, or his licence conditions."
She said the panel-of-three's decision must now be scrutinised to see if there was any "illegality" involved, or if the "decision was so irrational, no rational Parole Board could have ever come to it".
However, criminal lawyer Luke Gittos told Sky News: "If the basis of this judicial review is that the Parole Board failed to consider the views of all those people who made complaints against Worboy's but for whom their case was no longer prosecuted… I don't think it's going to have many legs.
"The Parole Board did consider the views of the victims, they considered the views of the victims whose cases were actually prosecuted and for whom Worboys was convicted."
Going on to say that this procedure was "perfectly normal", he concluded: "If that is the sole basis of the challenge, I think the review is doomed to fail".
London mayor Sadiq Khan has said Worboys "should not be allowed to set foot in London" following his release.
Shadow justice secretary Richard Burgon told Sky News there needs to be "more transparency" in the parole process.
He also said that "victims and the wider public have lost confidence" in the system.
Labour have called for a complete end-to-end independent review of the entire process.