Sixty-three violent criminals paroled like Worboys

Under-pressure minister demands assurances on prisoners who were freed straight back into society

THE row over the John Worboys parole fiasco intensified last night after officials admitted 63 violent criminals, including murderers and rapists, were similarly cleared for release last year from high security jails straight on to Britain’s streets.

Ministers were last night seeking assurances that the freed prisoners had been subject to proper scrutiny, after the decision to release Worboys – one of Britain’s most prolific sex attackers – was quashed by the High Court over a series of blunders made by both the Parole Board and the Ministry of Justice.

David Gauke, the Justice Secretary, has demanded a list of all category A prisoners who were released directly into society rather than spending time in an open jail first.

The Parole Board had still to hand over the list last night but claimed the public was often safer if offenders were placed in the community in “approved premises” rather than in open prisons.

Mr Gauke, Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor, is under fire for his handling of the crisis, having threatened to take the Parole Board to court before backing down.

Last night Mr Gauke’s allies suggested that David Lidington, his predecessor who became Theresa May’s de facto deputy in the last Cabinet reshuffle, should shoulder some of the blame for the Ministry of Justice’s failure to provide a full dossier on Worboys to the Parole Board.

Worboys, 60, had been within days of being released direct from Wakefield Prison into the community when two of his victims made a successful challenge in the High Court. Figures disclosed by the Parole Board to the High Court show that a total of 63 prisoners in category A high security jails such as Wakefield were released directly into the community in the 12 months to March 31, 2017.

Sir Brian Leveson, the High Court judge who quashed Worboys’ release, said in his judgment that he was concerned that category A prisoners were being freed straight into society.

“There are obvious advantages in subjecting a prisoner to regimes of lessening stringency in order properly to test the robustness of the risk assessment,” Sir Brian wrote in his judgment.

However, a Parole Board spokesman said: “This happens more than once a week. It is not a shock for us to release direct from category A prisons.”

Nick Hardwick, who was forced to resign as Parole Board chairman on Monday night, on the eve of the Worboys’ decision, told The Daily Telegraph that open prisons were often unsuitable for some of the most serious offenders. Mr Hardwick said: “I am quite certain some prisoners will get better supervision in approved premises in the community where you can have regular monitoring rather than in an open prison where the staffing levels are incredibly low. From what I know of the Worboys case, he is one of the cases where open prison would not have been appropriate.”

The dossier compiled by MOJ officials failed to include such basic material as the judge’s comments on sentencing the serial sex attacker and further evidence of his widespread offending.

The Parole Board has privately referred to the MOJ file on Worboys as the “dodgy dossier” and questioned why, if

‘Serious offenders are returning to the community without spending time in an open prison’

Mr Hardwick had been sacked, had Mr Gauke not been forced to quit too.

Mr Gauke’s friends have pointed out that the crucial parole hearing took place in November, when Mr Lidington was presiding over the department.

Mr Gauke has called for a specific review of six Category A prisoners, considered “exceptional risks” of escaping, who have already been released straight to approved accommodation, colloquially called a “halfway house”.

The Parole Board had approved a similar plan for Worboys despite the fact he was a predatory sex attacker who police believe assaulted more than 100 women while working as a black cab driver in London. A source said that the Parole Board had still to hand over the six names to Mr Gauke’s team at the MOJ. But the fact that a total of 63 prisoners in Category A prisons had been similarly released will alarm victims.

Harry Fletcher, a former probation union official who now runs a victims’ rights organisation, said last night: “It is extremely concerning that serious offenders are returning straight to the community without spending time in an open prison where they can be prepared for release. It could be the Parole Board does not have faith in open prisons.” Bob Neill, the Conservative MP and chairman of the Justice Committee, wanted to examine what happened in the Worboys case and look at parole granted to other violent offenders.

“It is important the public has reassurance. We will want to scrutinise how the Parole Board and justice system work and the lessons learned,” he said.