Shoe fetish killer who murdered mum moved to open prison ahead of release

The grieving daughter of a woman raped and stabbed to death by a killer with a shoe fetish is outraged the "dangerous" murderer is set to be released from jail.

Twisted Christopher Farrow has been moved to an open prison in preparation for release by parole chiefs despite him never apologising for the heinous crime.

He tied receptionist Wendy Speakes, 51, up with a pair of stockings, forced her to wear blue mule shoes before raping and killing her.

Mrs Speakes’ body was found at her home in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, on March 15, 1994, and sparked a six-year manhunt for sadistic Farrow.

He was finally caught after advances in fingerprint technology allowed a comparison to be made to the partial print found at the murder scene.

He was jailed for life at Leeds Crown Court in November 2000 and told he must serve a minimum term of 18 years behind bars after pleading guilty to the murder and rape.

A Parole Board panel has now decided the former painter and decorator is fit to be moved from a secure jail to an open prison in preparation for release from custody.

The decision has outraged Mrs Speakes’ daughter who has long campaigned to keep her mother’s killer locked up forever.

Tracey Speakes, 54, says she remains convinced Farrow is still a serious danger to women and will strike again if granted his freedom.

She said: "I think he is a dangerous, dangerous man.

"People need to be reminded of what he has done. Particularly people in Leeds and Wakefield if he is going to move back there.

"Why should he have the right to freedom after what he has done?

"He has shown no remorse – right from committing this offence in 1994 up until the day he is going to be released.

"He has never said sorry."

Parole Board chiefs took the decision at Hull Prison in July this year despite Farrow being in ‘denial’ over the murder of Mrs Speakes.

Her daughter, Tracey also had to go through the harrowing experience of reading a victim statement at Farrow’s hearing.

She described the years of torment and anguish Farrow’s shockingly brutal actions had upon her and her family.

Tracey said she is also angry at the Parole Board hearing process in which she had to drive from her home in Essex to Hull Prison to read her statement.

She said: "The whole thing is a shambles. It is all geared towards the offender.

"I would say this to the justice system – you need to sort it out!"

She told members of the Parole Board panel: "The local community would be living in terror if he was released.

"A pair of mum’s shoes were never found and to this day I believe he hid them as a trophy for his next victim.

"The pain of living with the injustice of the life sentence not meaning life in prison when he took my mum’s life without a second thought would be impossible for me to live with.

"I am sure that the feelings of dread and panic attacks would escalate.

"Looking over my shoulder knowing he was no longer in prison would affect the life I have managed to build back up since 1994."

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "We appreciate that reading out a statement at a parole hearing can be upsetting for victims which is why they have the option not to and are given support when they do.

"We take the welfare of victims very seriously and are carrying out a full review of the Parole Board rules to build on work already done to increase transparency and further support victims."

A spokesperson for the Parole Board said: "The Parole Board values any victim engagement in the parole process and understands for those wishing to attend oral hearings to read out their statement, that this is can be an anxious and distressing event.

"We work with HMPPS (Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service) colleagues to minimise distress and have provided guidance for our panel chairs to assist them supporting victims.

"The Secretary of State will provide a representative to support the victim on the day and they will make all the arrangements with the prison in regards to the victim attending the hearing."

A court previously heard, Farrow tricked his way into her home an hour after failing to get into the house of a 24-year-old woman he had stalked for several days.

Farrow, a printer, made Mrs Speakes take off her slippers and wear a pair of blue shoes which he had found in a cupboard downstairs.

He then forced her upstairs to her bedroom, where he gagged her and bound her hands with a pair of black stockings which he had bought that afternoon.

Farrow, of Cookridge, placed a pair of her black stiletto shoes on a bedside table before carrying out a sexual attack.

At the same time, he stabbed Mrs Speakes, a divorcee who lived alone, nine times in the back and shoulders and twice in the neck.

Mrs Speakes was found at the foot of her bed in a pool of blood by two friends who became worried when she did not arrive for work the next morning.

The killer left a pair of black stockings tied in loops beside the bed and part of a candlewick bedspread which he used to gag her.

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