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Crime

08th Jul 2022

British double killer can no longer stay in fancier prisons after two jail breaks

Kieran Galpin

jail breaks

‘He doesn’t seem to learn his lessons’

A man convicted of two separate charges of manslaughter is now ineligible for low-security prisons after escaping twice, putting the families of his victims through even more stress.

Darren Pilkington appeared before Bolton Crown Court on July 7, where he admitted to fleeing open conditions at HMP Kirkham. Consequently, the 39-year-old was served another six months behind bars.

The Hindley resident had escaped on May 25 of this year; his presence only missed after a roll call was taken. Police officers found him at a property in Horwich three days later when he was then arrested. A man and a woman were also arrested on suspicion of assisting Pilkington.

jail breaks

Pilkington is one of a few people in the UK that had served time for two unrelated manslaughters, the first alongside his brother for the killing of Paul Akister in Hindley town centre when he was just 15.

In 2006, Pilkington was jailed again for pushing his 19-year-old girlfriend Carly Fairhurst down the stairs, resulting in her death.

Carly’s parents, Trevor and Sheila, have spoken out about the continued stress of Pilkington’s escapes but are pleased with the decision to move him to a prison with higher security.

“It is reassuring to hear from the Justice Department that Pilkington is now going to be kept in a proper prison and let’s hope that he is in there for a good long stretch,” Trevor said, according to Wigan Today. “He doesn’t seem to learn his lessons.”

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