Parole Board could release double killer
A DOUBLE killer, who strangled and mutilated a woman two years after he was freed from a life sentence for butchering a pensioner in her own home, could soon be released.
A decision on whether to free Keith Pollard, 68, will be revealed on Thursday, the Parole Board said.
Pollard murdered Andrea Sinclair, the mother of Big Brother contestant Chanelle Hayes, in 1988. He had picked her up as she worked as a prostitute.
Chanelle was just a few months old at the time. Her mother’s body was so mutilated she had to be identified by a birthmark on her leg.
Pollard killed Ms Sinclair just two years after being released from a life sentence given in 1972 for the murder of Violet Thompson.
She was stabbed 70 times after Pollard broke into her home that year.
In November 1988, he was jailed for life again with a 20-year minimum, which expired in 2008, for Ms Sinclair’s murder.
The trial, in which he pleaded self defence, heard medical evidence from two psychiatrists who suggested that Pollard had “perverse sexual interests”.
A board spokesman said: “His tariff expired in 2009, so he has spent an extra 14 years in prison due to earlier reviews. This will be his sixth review and a Secretary of State representative has been assigned to the case.”
Speaking in 2018 ahead of an earlier review that did not recommend his release, Chanelle said: “He’s not safe to be out on the streets and I hate the thought of him being free.”
Pollard’s potential release was announced during a board press briefing last week, as it seeks to increase transparency as part of a review in the wake of the John Worboys Black Cab rapist scandal.
The board also said a decision on whether to move Adam Swellings, now 34, to an open prison will be made on April 11. Swellings is one of three killers of Garry Newlove, a 47-year-old dad who was attacked in Warrington, Cheshire, in August 2007 after he confronted a group of drunk youths.
Mr Newlove died in hospital 36 hours later, causing public outrage about youth violence.
Other reviews due in the coming weeks include: Jonvenables, one of the two 10-year-olds who killed two-year-old James Bulger; Colin Pitchfork, who was jailed for life in 1988 for raping and murdering 15-year-old girls Lynda Mann and Dawn Ashworth; and murderer Russell Causley, who refuses to reveal the whereabouts of his wife Carole Packman’s body.
All three were recalled to prison for licence breaches after previously being freed from life terms by the board. Hearings are held in private. But the board is considering a pilot scheme to give journalists access to lists of upcoming reviews. They may also be invited to some hearings, with the changes potentially being made permanent.
The board has allowed a film crew to record whole hearings for a planned BBC2 documentary which could air next year. A spokeswoman said: “It is to give the public more confidence as it has not been a system they are able to see. How can you trust something you don’t understand. One priority is to make things more open and clear.”
The briefing came the day before Justice Secretary Dominic Raab unveiled plans to bring back powers for him to block the release of the most dangerous offenders, even if the board deems them safe.