Twisted killer Michael Hardacre, dubbed the ' Rochdale Ripper' after he killed, raped and mutilated women during a three month spate of attacks, has been denied parole. Hardacre is behind bars after he murdered a retired teacher, raped four women and robbed at least six others in the summer of 2000.
After he was sentenced to life in prison at Manchester Crown Court a senior detective described him as the most evil and violent sex offender he had come across in 21 years. Judge Michael Sachs told the then 24-year-old he had demonstrated 'a new level of depravity'.
It can now be reported that Hardacre applied to the Parole Board for release. But, during a hearing in May 2022, the board decided he was still too dangerous to be set free and also refused to recommend that he be transferred to an open prison.
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A spokesperson for the Parole Board said: "We can confirm that a panel of the Parole Board refused the release of Michael Hardacre following a paper review. The panel also refused to recommend a move to open prison.
"Parole Board decisions are solely focused on what risk a prisoner could represent to the public if released and whether that risk is manageable in the community.
"A panel will carefully examine a huge range of evidence, including details of the original crime, and any evidence of behaviour change, as well as explore the harm done and impact the crime has had on the victims.
"Parole reviews are undertaken thoroughly and with extreme care. Protecting the public is our number one priority.
"Under current legislation he will be eligible for a further review in due course. The date of the next review will be set by the Ministry of Justice."
Hardacre was a petty criminal who was in and out of young offender institutions throughout his teenage life and a heroin and amphetamine addict with a £150 day a habit. He had been released from prison only three months before he first struck.
That attack came on June 28 when he raped, robbed and beat a woman on a canal bank in the town. Two months later, on August 17, he attacked a grandmother in a subway and indecently assaulted her before stealing her handbag.
On September 2, he murdered and robbed retired school teacher Eileen Jawczak in an alleyway 50 yards from her home in Rochdale as she walked home from a college reunion at a pub quiz.
A fortnight later he subjected a teenage girl to a terrifying attack in an alleyway in Rochdale town centre. He raped her twice, beat her and slashed her on the back and face with a craft knife before stealing her money and jewellery.
The terrifying assaults prompted one of the biggest manhunts in Greater Manchester Police history. The crucial breakthrough came when a forensic scientist spotted similarities between the attacks.
Hardacre had left DNA evidence behind at the first attack and a blooded palm print at the second, leading to him being charged with rape. However police also suspected him of Mrs Jawczak's murder.
When he was questioned, he said he was at home at the time with his girlfriend, a claim that was refuted by a relative, who later told detectives that he had seen Hardacre outside a Milkstone Road takeaway at about the time of the killing. When a pathologist at Guy's Hospital, London, was able to tell police that a footprint left at the murder scene matched the pattern on the trainers taken from Hardacre's home at St John's Court, Newbold, detectives knew they had their man.
On September 13, 2001, the jury at Hardcare's trial was applauded by a packed courtroom as they found Hardcare guilty of all 11 charges against him after just three and a half hours deliberation. As the court heard of his 'appalling' criminal record, which included more than 100 offences, one man shouted 'monster'.
Passing a sentence of 146 years in jail to run concurrently, Justice Michael Sachs said: "It never ceases to amaze me, the depths of depravity that human beings can descend to, and you have taken that to a new level. You have displayed no remorse or regret."
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