Two of the men who murdered Pc Andrew Harper are set to be freed from jail early under Labour’s plans to tackle prison overcrowding.
Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers are now eligible to be released halfway through their sentences under the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) early release scheme.
They were jailed for 13 years in 2020 for the manslaughter of Harper, 28.
The killing of PC Andrew Harper
The pair, who were 17 at the time, were in the car that pulled Harper’s body more than a mile along a road near Sulhamstead in Berkshire on August 15, 2019.
The vehicle was being driven by the third killer, Henry Long, who is not eligible for early release.
Harper had gone to investigate the theft of a quad bike when Cole and Bowers attempted to escape, with the policeman’s ankle getting caught in a towrope loop.
Mother informed of potential release
Harper’s mother Debbie Adlam was told her son’s killers might have their sentences reduced in a letter from MoJ. The department admitted the “information may be difficult” given “the lasting impact the offence may have had on it”.
Adlam told The Telegraph the news of their potential early release was an “insult beyond anything able to be put into words”.
She added: “It makes me feel sick. Andrew’s life doesn’t get to come back. It feels like a slap in the face and an insult.”
It is unclear exactly when the pair will become eligible for release.
Long, the driver, will be able to apply for parole after serving half of his 16-year jail sentence. He will not be eligible for early release under the scheme.
