Who is Colin Pitchfork? The double child murderer waiting to see if he'll be released from prison
Colin Pitchfork raped and murdered two 15-year-old girls in the 1980s. The parole board recommended him for release from prison, but must now reconsider their decision after Lord Chancellor Alex Chalk intervened.
Thursday 27 July 2023 12:27, UK
The Parole Board must reconsider whether it should release double child killer Colin Pitchfork from prison.聽
But who is he, what exactly did he do, and what has happened with his prison sentence?
What crimes did Colin Pitchfork commit?
Pitchfork raped and murdered two 15-year-old girls in Leicestershire in the 1980s.
He attacked Lynda Mann when she was walking home from babysitting in 1983, raping and strangling her and leaving her body on a footpath.
He was 22 at the time and left his baby son sleeping in the car while he carried out the attack.
Three years later, Dawn Ashworth was killed in a similar manner.
He was also convicted of sexually assaulted two more girls, including a 16-year-old who he assaulted as he threatened her with a screwdriver and a knife.
Pitchfork also admitted to having exposed himself to more than 1,000 girls and women.
How was he caught?
Pitchfork was the first man convicted on DNA evidence.
A local 17-year-old with learning difficulties was originally identified as a suspect, but semen samples from both murder victims did not match the DNA from his blood sample. He was the first person to have his innocence established in this way.
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Police launched the world's first mass screening for DNA, which involved 5,000 men in three villages being asked to volunteer blood or saliva samples.
Pitchfork managed to evade detection by paying a colleague to take the test for him - but he was found out when someone overheard the colleague discussing it in the pub.
He was arrested in 1987 and his DNA linked him to both murders.
A sentence, a release and a recall to prison
Pitchfork pleaded guilty to two murders, two rapes, two indecent assaults and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice
He was given a minimum sentence of 30 years in 1988, later reduced to 28 years for good behaviour, and was released in September 2021.
He was recalled to prison two months later after approaching young women in the street.
Pitchfork was granted parole in June. The parole board said he should not have been recalled to prison in 2021 and found it "was no longer necessary for the protection of the public for Mr Pitchfork to remain confined".
Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary Alex Chalk asked the Parole Board to reconsider whether that was the right decision.
His intervention came after the Conservative MP for South Leicestershire Alberto Costa called for the decision to be challenged.
Mr Chalk's application was granted on 27 July, with the judge making a finding of "irrationality" in the decision to release Pitchfork.
A fresh Parole Board hearing to decide whether he can be released will now take place at a date to be fixed.
Decision to release killer 'diabolical', victim's mother says
Last month Dawn's mother, Barbara Ashworth, called the Parole Board's decision to recommend his release "diabolical".
She told Sky News: "He's obviously going to have an urge, we just don't know what's in his mind.
"I don't think there's any way he should be walking the streets. He can't hurt me anymore but could cause disruption.
"He's able to make the Parole Board believe whatever he wants to say."