Daughter's relief at decision to keep killer behind bars

A recommendation to transfer to an open prison a man who raped and murdered a woman in her own home in Wakefield has been rejected.

- by Tony Gardner

Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood turned down the Parole Board proposal to move Christopher Farrow to less secure jail conditions.

Shoe fetishist Farrow forced his way into Wendy Speakes’s home in Balne Lane, Wakefield, in March 1994 before stabbing her to death in a sex attack.

Farrow, from Cookridge, Leeds, was given a life sentence with a minimum tariff of 18 years in 2000.

A Parole Board report, published last month, said Farrow should not be freed but should move to an open prison, the least secure jail category.

Ms Mahmood was required to make the final decision whether to accept the recommendation.

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "Wendy Speakes’s murder was an horrific crime and our thoughts remain with her friends and family.