A serial rapist has been recalled to jail only six weeks after he was released. The beast, Andrew Barlow, 66, previously known as Andrew Longmire, was slapped with 13 life sentences for his offences.
He was allowed out after serving 34 years inside and released into a probation hostel on March 6. But the Bolton-born predator is now back in jail after breaching his licence conditions.
Officials now say that the risk he poses is now not manageable in the community. This has enraged his victims and their families, who had campaigned to keep him behind bars with the help of veteran Manchester MP, Graham Stringer, reports Manchester Evening News.
Barlow's release was delayed after then-Justice Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab asked the Parole Board to reconsider its decision to let him out of prison.
Mr Raab said in January: “My thoughts remain with the victims of Andrew Barlow, whose despicable crimes blighted the lives of dozens of women. Public protection is my number one priority, which is why I’ve asked the Parole Board to reconsider their decision to release and I am overhauling the parole system to keep prisoners who pose a risk to the public off our streets.”
Today, Mr Stringer said: "It is extraordinary. I think this is another failure of the Parole Board to use common sense and protect the public from a very dangerous man. They were warned by me and the victims. This is institutional failure of the highest order."
A spokesman for the Parole Board said: "The offender has not been referred back to us for a parole review and so we don’t have access to any information about him being recalled and therefore we don’t have comment at this stage."
A relative of one of Barlow's rape victims said: "I took it on the chin in January and decided to get on with my life when Barlow was released - now this animal is back in our lives again. We told the authorities and they didn't listen.
"Someone has to be accountable for this. It will mean all the victims and their families are reliving the agony again like we had to in January when we tried in vain to stop his release. We told the authorities he was too high a risk and we have been proven right.
"I will like to sit down with someone from the Parole Board face to face and tell them what happened to our family because of Barlow - not submit an email like I had to in January."
The daughter of another victim commented: "I was shocked when I heard that he was being recalled so soon. But then when I thought about how evil and twisted he was when committing his crimes it doesn't surprise me.
"When the victim support officer told me I had goose bumps all over my body and then my eyes swelled up with tears, I was thinking who has he attacked this time. The officer told me that he had not hurt anyone but that his behaviour had meant an imemdiate recall to prison.
Barlow was handed out 11 life sentences in 1988 for raping 11 women and given an additional 56 years for other crimes. And then In 2010, and 2017, he received two more life sentences after rapes he committed in 1981 and 1982 were proven through advances in DNA technology.
As he had already surpassed his original 20-year tariff imposed in 1988 it was deemed that only another two years could be added added to his sentence in each case.
Barlow is barred from Greater Manchester and the licence conditions stated he had to comply with requirements to reside at a designated address, to be of good behaviour, to disclose developing relationships, and to report as required for supervision or other appointments.
In addition, he was ordered to submit to an enhanced form of supervision or monitoring including drug testing, signing-in times, GPS trail monitoring, polygraph testing and a specified curfew.
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “Protecting the public is our number one priority. That’s why offenders are subject to tough licence conditions and when they breach them, we do not hesitate to return them to custody.”
In a statement, the MOJ added: "Andrew Longmire is being returned to custody today following a breach of his licence conditions. His re-release will be a matter for the Parole Board. He has not been charged with any offences.
"Our Victims and Prisoners Bill includes plans to reform the parole process, including giving Ministers a power to veto the release of the most dangerous offenders, including murderers, rapists and terrorists."
Referring to the case of Barlow/Longmire, the statement added: "The former Secretary of State provided the Parole Board with a Secretary of State view opposing release; the Parole Board issued a provisional decision directing release.
"The former Secretary of State applied for reconsideration; the Parole Board rejected the application for reconsideration; and so the release decision became final. People convicted of violent sexual offences released from prison are managed on strict licences which can include residing at an Approved Premise and abiding by a curfew. They will also be subject to supervision which means attending meetings with a probation practitioner.
"If offenders are judged to pose an unmanageable risk in the community because they have breached their licence conditions, the Probation Service does not hesitate to recall them to prison to protect the public."
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