Police hopeful PC Harper killers will stay in prison

Police leaders remain "optimistic" that two of PC Andrew Harper's killers will be barred from securing an early release from prison.

Harper, from Wallingford in Oxfordshire, died in August 2019 when he was dragged by a car as three teenagers, including Albert Bowers and Jessie Cole, fled a quad bike theft in Berkshire.

More than one million people have signed a petition calling for the pair to remain behind bars after it emerged they could be released as part of a plan to reduce prison overcrowding.

Senior figures from Thames Valley Police met the justice secretary on Wednesday, and the government said he had been tasked with keeping more serious offenders like them in prison for longer.

Aileen O'Connor, chair of Thames Valley Police Federation, set up the petition and attended the meeting alongside the force's chief constable and police and crime commissioner (PCC).

"I just need to see a plan come to fruition to keep Andrew's killers where they belong – behind bars," she said.

O'Connor added that Prime Minister Andy Burnham was also optimistic a plan could be made to stop their release and she would be "holding them to account on this".

More formal announcements of the government's plans are expected after MPs return to Parliament following their summer recess next week.

Earlier this month, 50 of the UK's chief constables asked the government to pursue "every legal option" to stop them being freed.

Under changes to the Sentencing Act made this year, Cole and Bowers, who were sentenced to 13 years for manslaughter in July 2020, will become eligible for release from custody after serving half of their sentences.

Chief Constable Jason Hogg said the meeting was "constructive and positive" and that Justice Secretary Alex Norris was made aware of "the strength of feeling that exists not only within TVP but across policing more widely".

PCC Matthew Barber added that the government should "reflect on the impact these provisions are having on victims and their families, as well as the confidence that the public places in the criminal justice system".

A government spokesperson said: "The death of PC Andrew Harper was a horrific crime. Our thoughts are with his family and friends, and we share the anger from the police community that we are in this position.

"Thanks to tireless campaigning by Andrew's family, Harper's Law means that anyone convicted of killing an emergency worker whilst committing a crime now gets a mandatory life sentence.

"This government has gone further by introducing a presumption that anyone convicted of murdering a police, prison or probation officer is handed a whole-life order."

The driver of the getaway car, Henry Long, was jailed for 16 years for manslaughter but is not eligible for release under the government's plans.