Garry Newlove murderer Adam Swellings to move to open prison

Adam Swellings is the last of the dad-of-three’s killers to remain in jail, having been handed a life imprisonment with a minimum term of 17 years – which expires in 2024.

He is now bidding to be moved into an open prison in preparation for his release, and is believed to have appeared before the Parole Board today, Monday.

A spokesman said: “The parole review of Adam Swellings has been referred to us by the Secretary of State for Justice and is following standard processes, with a decision expected in April.”

Mr Newlove died aged 47 in August 2007, two days after being brutally attacked by a gang of teenagers outside his family home on Station Road North in Fearnhead.

Swellings was aged 19 at the time, with fellow murderers Jordan Cunliffe and Steven Sorton – who were 16 and 17 respectively – have been released during 2020.

They served sentences of 15 and 12 years for their parts in the shocking killing.

Widow Baroness Helen Newlove previously spoke of her helplessness at the upcoming parole hearings for the killers, saying in 2018: “Release is a painful part of the victim journey.

“You know it must happen but it does not make it any easier.”

She has also backed a campaign for a victims’ rights bill, adding: “The victims’ law would give a voice to victims.

“It will make people respect what that victim’s journey is about and not leave them on the edge.

“Only then will they be at the centre of our criminal justice system.

“At the moment they are nowhere near.”