Pitchfork was jailed for life after raping and strangling 15-year-olds Lynda Mann in 1983 and Dawn Ashworth in Leicestershire in 1986.

He was the first man convicted on DNA evidence after a lengthy investigation.

At the time he committed his first crime, he was a 22-year-old, married father-of-two. He is now in his 60s.

The killer was eventually caught after the world's first mass screening for DNA - which involved 5,000 men in three villages being asked to volunteer blood or saliva samples.

Pitchfork then pleaded guilty to two murders, two rapes, two indecent assaults and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice and was sentenced to a 30-year minimum term, but that was cut by two years in 2009, before he was then moved to an open prison in 2018.

The Ministry of Justice said it would look "extremely carefully at whether to ask the Parole Board to reconsider its decision", but did not rule out that it would not.

Barbara Ashworth, the mother of Dawn Ashworth, told Sky News: "It's diabolical. He's obviously going to have an urge, we just don't know what's in his mind.

"I don't think there's any way he should be walking the streets. He can't hurt me anymore but could cause disruption.

"He's able to make the parole board believe whatever he wants to say."

In 2021, Pitchfork was released in September and then arrested and recalled to prison two months later after approaching young women in the street.

The parole board said it had determined it "was no longer necessary for the protection of the public for Mr Pitchfork to remain confined and thereby directed his release".

It said his release would be subject to the following licence conditions:

• To comply with requirements to reside at a designated address, to be of good behaviour, to surrender his passport, to disclose developing relationships, and to report as required for supervision or other appointments
• To submit to an enhanced form of supervision or monitoring including GPS tagging, signing-in times, a specified curfew and disclosure of any vehicle
• To comply with other identified limitations concerning contacts, activities, residency and an exclusion zone to avoid contact with victims, women and children
• To meet extensive specified restrictions relating to the use of electronic technology
• To continue to work on addressing defined areas of risk in the community

'A very real danger'

But Alberto Costa, MP for South Leicestershire, said he was "deeply disappointed" by the decision and said he would write to justice secretary Alex Chalk to ask for an "immediate and urgent review".

The Conservative backbencher wrote on Twitter: "It is simply unthinkable that a man who committed such egregious crimes should ever be released, and I will be asking the Government to challenge this decision in the strongest possible terms."

He added that "this man still presents a very real danger to the public".

A spokesperson for the Parole Board said: "Having considered all of the evidence, during a hearing observed by the victims and the local MP, the panel found that Mr Pitchfork's recall to custody was flawed and not supported by the evidence.

"Separately, the panel found that the prisoner's continued detention was no longer necessary for the protection of the public."

They added: "This case is eligible for reconsideration if any party thinks the decision is irrational or unfair."

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "This will be a very upsetting decision for the families of Lynda Mann and Dawn Ashworth and our heartfelt sympathies remain with them.

"Pitchfork will remain in prison while the Lord Chancellor looks extremely carefully at whether to ask the Parole Board to reconsider its decision.

"Our number one priority is public protection which is why we are reforming the parole system and introducing a ministerial check to keep the most dangerous offenders behind bars."