A man who raped and murdered two schoolgirls in the 1980s has been released from prison after attempts to keep him locked up proved unsuccessful.
Colin Pitchfork, now in his early 60s, received a life sentence for raping and killing Lynda Mann and Dawn Ashworth, both 15, in Leicestershire in 1983 and 1986.
Dawn’s mother, Barbara Ashworth, spoke out against the decision to free Pitchfork, saying “life should have meant life”.
“Well it was on the books that he was going to be released, but I don’t think he should be breathing the same air as us,” she told the PA Media news agency.
“It goes without saying that life should have meant life in his case, because he said he was guilty of the offences, the murders of both the girls … and he did a lot more besides.”
Asked if she was surprised Pitchfork had become eligible for release, Ashworth said: “Yes, I think so. They did say that if it had been done today he wouldn’t have been let out. But that doesn’t excuse anything. I don’t have my daughter back or any of the hopes and dreams that she had in her life.”
Questioned on how she and her family would cope with Pitchfork’s release, she continued: “Well, I can never put it out of my mind. I recoil every day with people talking about their daughters and grandchildren. As I say, it’s with you daily, what you’ve had taken and all that she could have achieved.”
Ashworth said she struggled to deal with the news of his release: “No, I’m not able to. I just think it should never have been allowed, he should never be walking the streets again. The law is the law and what they say goes, but it shouldn’t have come about – he should have been locked away for life without parole as far as I’m concerned.
Leicestershire schoolgirl Dawn Ashworth. Photograph: Topham/PA
“It’s an existence, it’s not a life. I’m not living a life, it’s just go from day to day. Something like this goes to pull the rug from under you and you don’t realise how shattered your life can be when you’ve just had everything taken away.”
Her brother, Philip Musson, 68, from Nottinghamshire, told the Daily Mail: “I’m not an advocate for the death penalty but there are some crimes so great that that punishment should be carried out, and Pitchfork’s fit that category.
“I consider the decision to release him an experiment, and I only pray that the people living in the area where he is resettled do not pay the price.”
Pitchfork, released on Wednesday, was the first man convicted of murder on the basis of DNA evidence in 1988 when he confessed to his crimes.
The Parole Board ruled he was “suitable for release” at a hearing in March, despite this being denied in 2016 and 2018. He will be placed on the sex offender register and subject to other licence conditions.
The South Leicestershire MP, Alberto Costa, who has campaigned against Pitchfork’s release, said: “I am extremely saddened and deeply disappointed that the convicted child rapist and killer Colin Pitchfork has today been released from prison.
“Since I was first elected MP for South Leicestershire, where Pitchfork’s heinous crimes took place, I have worked tirelessly on behalf of my constituents and countless others to oppose his release.
“While I respect the Parole Board’s decision to reject the government’s challenge against his release, I do not agree with it.”
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “Public safety is our top priority, which is why he is subject to some of the strictest licence conditions ever set and will remain under supervision for the rest of his life. If he breaches these conditions, he faces an immediate return to prison.”
