Colin Pitchfork: Fears after child killer moved to open prison

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-38547168

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The mother of a girl who was raped and murdered says she fears her daughter's killer could soon be freed after he was moved to an open prison.

Colin Pitchfork, 55, was given a life sentence in 1988 for the rape and murder of 15-year-olds Lynda Mann and Dawn Ashworth in Leicestershire.

Kath Eastwood, Lynda's mother, said the thought of his possible release gave her "sleepless nights".

The Prison Service said it did not comment on individual prisoners.

Pitchfork was the first person convicted based on DNA profiling after he raped and murdered the two schoolgirls in 1983 and 1986.

Alberto Costa MP, who is the MP for South Leicestershire where the murders occurred, received a letter from Prisons Minister Sam Gyimah confirming Pitchfork had been moved.

It came after the former Justice Secretary Michael Gove recommended the transfer in June.

However, the letter did not say which prison Pitchfork had been moved to, when it happened or whether he would be allowed out in public, unsupervised.

Mr Costa said he understood the Parole Board could decide in 2018 whether to release Pitchfork.

He said: "There are some crimes that are so heinous that you do have to ask whether it is ever right to release an individual."

Mrs Eastwood said Pitchfork did not deserve to ever be released.

"It gives me sleepless nights and the fear that one day he will be walking down the street near me," she said.

"He killed two girls and ruined two families and he should not have been considered for open prison.

"I'm very fearful, in my eyes this is his first steps to freedom."

Colin Pitchfork: Two brutal murders