Family's fury as M25 road rage killer Kenneth Noye, 71, is told he WILL be freed from prison after Parole Board praises his 'maturity', 'clear life goals' and 'ability to control his emotions'
- Kenneth Noye stabbed Stephen Cameron to death on the M25 in 1996
- The notorious former gangster was on licence from prison at the time
- He has served 20 years for the killing, but will be released in the coming weeks
- Victim's family have slammed the decision to free, saying he should die in jail
Notorious road rage killer Kenneth Noye is to be released from prison, after a parole board praised his 'improved victim awareness', 'clear life goals' and 'ability to control his emotions'.
The former gangster, 71, has served nearly 20 years for the vicious stabbing of Stephen Cameron, 21, on an M25 slip road near Swanley, Kent, in 1996.
The cold-blooded murder took place in front of Mr Cameron's 17-year-old fiancée Danielle Cable while Noye was out on licence from a previous prison term.
The Parole Board today confirmed his release from an open jail has been approved after it ruled he is no longer a 'significant risk to the public'.
Despite his history of violence stretching back decades, the parole panel said they were impressed by the killer's 'decision-making', 'maturity about his situation' and 'insight into his past behaviour'.
Kenneth Noye, pictured last year outside an open prison, is to be released from jail
Noye stabbed 21-year-old Stephen Cameron (left) to death on a slip road to the M25 in Swanley, Kent, in 1996. Noye then went on the run in Spain
The decision means Noye will walk free from Standford Hill open prison in Kent in the next few weeks.
The victim's father Ken Cameron, 72, said Noye should die behind bars.
Reacting to the decision today, he said: 'I'm totally devastated. I can't believe they have made this decision. Life should mean life.
'I hoped this day would never come. I sort of knew it was coming, though - I was almost resigned to it. But it is still a complete kick in the teeth.
'He is going back on the streets when he should spend the rest of his days behind bars.
'Stephen was denied a life by Noye on May 19, 1996 when he left him lying in the gutter. And we are the ones who have had to live a life sentence. There isn't a day we don't think of Stephen.'
Mr Cameron added: 'He can now go and live the rest of his life as a free man while our family still grieve for Stephen every day.
'I'm sure he'll head off to a nice little bolt hole in Spain somewhere and live the good life.'
Mr Cameron's parents Ken and Toni outside court in 2000. Mrs Cameron has since sadly died
Former career criminal Noye, once acquitted of murdering a policeman after claiming self-defence, has been at Standford Hill open prison in Kent for the past 18 months - just 30 miles from his victim's father.
When talking about the parole board decision, Ken said: 'This is a joke. It's nonsense.
'Noye has always been a nasty and violent man all his life and some courses and programmes in prison are not going to change that.
'He says what they want to hear and he does what they want to see.
'He would have made out he is a good boy to them. But he will walk out of that prison and pick up from where he left off.
'He's pulled the wool over their eyes and now he is being released.
'He's never going to change. He's an evil man.'
Justifying the decision to release him today, a spokesman for the parole board said: 'We can confirm that a panel of the Parole Board has directed the release of Kenneth Noye following an oral hearing.
'Parole Board decisions are solely focused on whether someone would represent a significant risk to the public after release.
'The panel will have carefully looked at a whole range of evidence, including details of the original evidence and any evidence of behaviour change. We do that with great care and public safety is our number one priority.'
In 1985, Noye stabbed to death Detective Constable John Fordham in the grounds of Kent mansion. He was cleared of murder.
But the following year he was jailed for 14 years for handling gold bullion stolen in the infamous 1983 Brink's-Mat robbery. Twice refused parole, he was freed in 1994.
Noye pictured in custody in the UK after his arrest in Spain over the M25 murder
After the 1996 M25 attack, Noye fled, arranged for the Land Rover he was driving to be disposed of, and flew to Spain where he lived under a false name until his arrest in 1998.
When he was convicted of murder in 2000, he was handed a life sentence with a minimum of 16 years.
Ex-Flying Squad head Barry Phillips said last week: 'If people look at what Noye has done in his life, and the trail of death and human misery he has left behind him, they will perhaps conclude he should stay behind bars for the rest of his natural.'
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