London - The British government Wednesday dismissed as
'unfounded speculation' reports that Great Train Robber Ronnie Biggs
could be freed from jail later this week in line with parole
proceedings.
A Ministry of Justice spokesman denied that a decision had been
taken on the release of the 79-year-old, who was hospitalized with a
hip fracture Sunday.
Biggs, who surrendered to British police in 2001 after 36 years on
the run, would have served a third of his 30-year sentence if he was
to be freed.
But Justice Secretary Jack Straw has the last word on a
recommendation by the prison parole board that the ailing prisoner
should be transferred to a care home.
His legal adviser, Giovanni Di Stefano, said Wednesday that Biggs
was 'seriously ill' and would have to stay in hospital in Norwich,
eastern England, for the next two to six weeks.
'The only difference if Mr Straw has approved the parole is that
the guards will disappear from the hospital,' said the lawyer.
Biggs, who has suffered several strokes, can barely walk and is
fed through a tube, would be eligible for parole on July 3 at the
earliest.
He gained notoriety for his role in the audacious 1963 raid on a
Glasgow to London mail train in which a 15-strong gang got away with
a cash haul of 2.6 million pounds - a record at the time.
Biggs escaped from London's Wandsworth jail 15 months after his
conviction and sentencing and hid in France, Spain, Australia and
Brazil, giving Scotland Yard detectives the slip for 36 years.
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