Cancer-stricken murderer ‘could kill again’ if released
THE children of a woman killed by a cancer-stricken murderer serving a whole-life sentence have warned he could kill again if he is released on compassionate grounds.
Victor Farrant, who is in his 70s, was jailed for life for the murder of his former girlfriend Glenda Hoskins, 44, and the attempted murder of Ann Fidler, 45, at Winchester Crown Court in 1998.
Weeks after he was released from a 12-year sentence for rape and other offences on Nov 7 1995, he beat Fidler at her home in Eastleigh, Hampshire.
Six weeks later, he murdered Hoskins at her luxury waterside home in Portsmouth by drowning her in a bath.
He left her body in the attic where it was found by her 15-year-old daughter.
Hoskins’ family last month revealed they had been contacted by officials because Farrant was being considered for compassionate leave as he had been diagnosed with terminal cancer.
A Multi-agency Public Protection Arrangements (Mappa) panel is set to meet today to consider the case.
In a letter to be presented to panel members, Mrs Hoskins’ family said: “Victor Farrant is an incredibly dangerous man with a hatred of women – if he is sick and dying then I’m afraid this makes him even more dangerous.
“What has he got to lose by killing/ raping again?”
The family added: “Justice Butterfield said that he should never be released.”
The letter also said that Farrant had not shown remorse. Farrant’s release would require friends of their late mother to be given police protection because of his “previous behaviour of vengeance” and would amount to a “national scandal”, the letter said.
Following the meeting of the Mappa panel, the case will go to the Ministry of Justice where the power lies with Justice Secretary Alex Chalk to grant or deny early release from prison.
Penny Mordaunt, the Conservative MP for Portsmouth North, has written to Mr Chalk saying she believed Farrant “is a danger to women and has demonstrated repeatedly that he cannot be reformed.” A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “Prisoners are only released on compassionate grounds in exceptional circumstances.”