John Worboys: Parole boss apologises 'unreservedly' to rapist's victims not told of release

• Video report by ITV News National Editor Allegra Stratton

The Parole Board's chairman has apologised "unreservedly" after it emerged some victims of serial London cabbie rapist John Worboys were not told of his imminent release.

Two victims reportedly first learned of the planned release while "listening on the radio, cooking tea for the kids", lawyer Harriet Wistrich said.

A group of MPs have written to the Justice Secretary calling for an urgent investigation into "how this decision has been managed".

On Friday, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said that then director of public prosecutions (DPP) Sir Keir Starmer did not have "any involvement in the decision making" in the Worboys case.

They continued that their decisions were made in full consideration with the Metropolitan Police.

The announcement was made after Sir Keir was urged to explain why further allegations against Worboys were not looked into.

Worboys, a former stripper and adult film star who became known as the "black cab rapist", was found guilty of 19 charges of drugging and sexually assaulting 12 women passengers, in one case raping a woman.

Following the trial at Croydon Crown Court, Worboys was jailed indefinitely, with a minimum term of eight years.

But police said in 2010 that his alleged victims numbered more than 100 after more people came forward following his trial and conviction.

The allegations were investigated but no further action was taken on the advice of the Crown Prosecution Service, police said, but questions have been raised about the decision by prosecutors not to pursue further allegations against the serial sex attacker.

Following the trial, the Metropolitan Police received further allegations against Worboys by 19 women, but the decision was taken not to proceed with these claims due to the maximum sentence available to the court, meaning Worboys could not have his jail term increased.

There is currently no live investigation into Worboys.

In a statement issued on Friday, Sir Keir said he was "grateful to the Crown Prosecution Service for reviewing the John Worboys' case file and for clarifying decisions taken at the time.

"As the CPS has made clear, neither I, nor my predecessor, had any involvement in the decision making behind the case.

"I welcome the decision by the Justice Select Committee to review how the Parole Board reached its decision.

"It is vital the public and victims of crime have the utmost confidence in the justice system.

"Finally, the crime committed by John Worboys were truly horrific and out thoughts must be with his victims during this difficult time.

"If there are any allegations against John Worboys that anybody thinks have not been looked into I would urge them to contact the police immediately so they can be investigated in full."

Fears that Worboys may have more victims, along with the Parole Board's decision to release the serial sex offender sparked an outcry from charities and support groups when it was made public on Thursday.

Professor Nick Hardwick, the chairman of the Parole Board, said he was "surprised and upset" to hear that some victims had not been informed of the decision before it was announced, adding that hearing the news in the way they did must have been "horrible" for them.

"We're still checking exactly what happened, but my understanding at the moment is that we were informed that the victims had been told about the decision and then we released the decision on that basis," he said.

"Nevertheless, this was a problem with the parole system and I apologise unreservedly to them."

As a result, Prof Hardwick is to be summoned before MPs to explain how the decision to free the serial sex attacker was reached.

Chair of the House of Commons Justice Committee, Bob Neill, said the fact that some of Worboys' victims had not been informed of his imminent release was "very disturbing", adding that it "is vital that the public has confidence in Parole Board decisions."

Yvette Cooper, chairwoman of the influential Home Affairs Select Committee, has called for the Parole Board to immediately publish its reasons for allowing his release, while charity campaigners called the time served by the 60-year-old "woefully short" and said his release "beggars belief".

• ITV News Political Correspondent Romilly Weeks believes this case may be a "catalyst" for change for the Parole Board, but adds that victims' groups may not be so welcoming to a more transparent system.

Prof Hardwick said he was not legally allowed to explain the reasons for the decision to release Worboys but that he would like to see the law changed, and would launch a public consultation on how decision-making is shared with the public.

Mr Neill added that "it is ridiculous that the current rules prevent the board making public the reasons for their decisions.

"Professor Hardwick has called for MPs to back 'opening the process up' and we will give him the opportunity to make precisely that case."

He continued that when Prof Hardwick appeared before the select committee, he would ask him how the parole board could be made more transparent.

In a letter to Justice Secretary David Lidington, a group of MPs have also said there should be "an urgent investigation by your office into whether the victims of Mr Worboys were given an opportunity ahead of any parole hearing to make representations about his possible release".

"The decision to release Mr Worboys, even on strict licensing conditions, cannot be considered to have been made with a full and complete understanding of the impact of his many crimes without such information," they wrote.

Mrs Cooper said she was "really shocked" by the decision to released Worboys and called for scrutiny of the Parole Board's reasoning before the prolific sex attacker is let out of jail.

She said Worboys' crimes were "the most appalling and vile" and there were "serious questions" over the Parole Board's decision.

"Given the seriousness of this case, the Parole Board should publish their reasons immediately so both the decision and the process can be scrutinised before this man is released," Mrs Cooper said.

"We also need to know what information and support was given to all the victims before this decision was taken."