Milestone reached to keep Andrew Harper’s killers in jail

The Change.org surpassed the 500,000 milestone just before Thursday afternoon, August 6 and continues to rise at speed.

Hundreds of thousands of people across the UK are demanding the government do not let Albert Bowers and Jessie Cole out of jail early.

Some 5,000 people are expected to be released early under sentencing changes, down from 6,000 after ministers exempted rapists and “serious” child sex offenders as part of the scheme to tackle overcrowding in jails.

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Cole and Bowers remain eligible to be freed halfway through their 13-year sentences after they were convicted of manslaughter in 2020 following Pc Harper’s death in 2019

As she backed the calls, widow Lissie Harper said: “Government has punched us in the gut… they should be ashamed of themselves.

“Hopefully we can make the current Government come to their senses and realise we cannot put people like this back on our streets. Justice should mean justice and serving the sentence given.”

Aileen O’Connor, who chairs the Thames Valley Police Federation, said releasing Cole and Bowers would anger and demoralise serving officers in the area.

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said she supported the Police Federation in considering a judicial review.

She told Today: “I’m not arguing against early release. We’ve had early release even under Conservatives.

“I’m against early release of this dangerous category of rapists, paedophiles, killers, including the killers of Pc Andrew Harper.”