Sister fears parole hearing is prelude to killer’s release
The Parole Board will decide if Martin Bell will be allowed into an open prison, 10 years after he was convicted of killing 23-year-old Gemma Simpson.
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The family of a woman who was brutally killed and dismembered by a taxi driver who left her body undiscovered for more than a decade had pleaded with the Parole Board not to let him into open prison conditions.
Martin Bell, 55, was given a life sentence at Leeds Crown Court in 2014 for the manslaughter of Gemma Simpson, who disappeared in May 2000, and ordered to serve a minimum of 12 years in prison.
Miss Simpson’s sister Naomi Carrack said she fears a parole hearing on Tuesday to consider Bell’s move from a Category C to an open prison is just a prelude to him being released in 2026.
Ms Carrick told the PA news agency: “There’s not gonna be any justice. It’s absolutely shocking that somebody like that, capable of that monstrosity, did that evil, is allowed to be given his life back.”
The sentencing judge in 2014 heard how Bell killed the 23-year-old with a hammer and a knife before sawing her legs off and burying her at a beauty spot near Harrogate, in North Yorkshire.
Bell admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.
The Parole Board is due to consider whether to allow Bell into an open prison with under two years to go before his “tariff” expires and his release can be considered.
She said: “He’s always going to be a danger to the public.”
Ms Carrack said: “As far as we’re concerned, he’s never been punished.
“He’s not serving any sentence, we’re serving a sentence.
“My sister was buried in the back end of nowhere for 14 years and he’s only done 10 years.
“And now he’s had enough. He wants to get on with his life.”
It's absolutely shocking that somebody like that, capable of that monstrosity, did that evil, is allowed to be given his life back
Ms Carrack said her family believes Bell should be “left to rot” for the whole of his life sentence.
She said she believes “it’s an absolute definite” that Bell’s bid to move to an open environment is a prelude to his release in 2026.
Ms Carrack said: “It’s never been about Gemma getting justice, because that’s not justice – 10 years when you’re killed like that.
“You’ve just got to wonder what’s going on because so many people are going to be released from prisons.
“I just think the general public really do need to know that that kind of person – who’s capable of murdering somebody, hammering them, stabbing them repeatedly, and then leaving her to bleed for three days in a bath before he dismembered her – is now going to be given an opportunity for two years to wander around in an open prison.”
Ms Carrack said: “You see, it’s not about it’s not about the family, is it? It’s about him and his rights.”
Asked about her sister, Gemma, she said: “She was really beautiful – really petite, long, dark hair. Really vibrant, lots of character, really loving, very outgoing, but sensitive as well.
“She was a lovely little sister.”
In their submissions to the Parole Board, the family said: “It is the family’s plea that decision-makers carefully consider the unpredictability of Bell’s actions and the severity of his crime.
“The safety and well-being of Gemma’s family must be prioritised above all else.
“They deserve the peace of mind, knowing that Bell is in a highly secure unit where his access to potential victims is restricted and closely monitored.”
The family said they “find themselves at the mercy of the offender’s wishes”, adding: “The past failures of mental health services in monitoring and supporting Bell’s condition raise legitimate concerns about his future behaviour.
“Given his history of non-compliance and the severity of his mental illness, there is a real and present danger that Bell’s psychosis could escalate, potentially leading to further violence and harm.
“His personality disorder is lifelong and probably not amenable to treatment, and he continues to pose a significant risk of serious harm to members of the public.”
After Bell’s sentencing in 2014, Miss Simpson’s father Glenn, who has since died, said he was “disgusted” by the sentence, saying his family’s ordeal of not knowing what happened had been longer than the time Bell will serve.
As with all prisoners given a minimum tariff, Judge Peter Collier KC told Bell in 2014 that he would not be released “until the Parole Board is satisfied that you no longer pose such a risk to the public”.
Julian Hendy from the Hundred Families charity said the court case and NHS investigations raised serious questions about the ability of mental health services to keep patients and the public safe.
He said the process around the release of violent and dangerous offenders is engulfed in secrecy so that “the public cannot be reassured and families rarely get the information they need to help them cope and recover from these terrible tragedies”.
He said: “There needs to be a better balance with far more openness and transparency.
“The system does need to change.”