Robert Brown: Release blocked of man who killed wife Joanna Simpson with a hammer
A British Airways captain who bludgeoned his wife to death with a hammer will remain in prison after his release was blocked by the lord chancellor.
Robert Brown was due to be automatically freed on licence next month halfway through his 26-year sentence for killing Joanna Simpson at their family home in October 2010.
But Lord Chancellor Alex Chalk has used new powers to keep him in jail and said his “appalling case” will instead be referred to the Parole Board to decide if he’s safe to be released.
“Joanna Simpson was bludgeoned and buried at the hands of Robert Brown, which left two children without a mother and caused irreparable harm to her family and loved ones,” said Mr Chalk, who is also the justice secretary.
“I made a commitment to Joanna’s family that I would give this case my closest personal attention.
“Having reviewed all the information available to me, I have blocked Brown’s automatic release and referred this case to the Parole Board using powers we introduced to protect the public from the most dangerous offenders.”
Joanna Simpson was bludgeoned to death with a hammer
Brown beat Ms Simpson to death with a claw hammer, as their two young children cowered in a playroom next door, before dumping the 46-year-old’s body in a makeshift coffin in Windsor Great Park.
He was acquitted of murder by a jury at Reading Crown Court in May 2011, but was jailed having previously admitted manslaughter on the ground of diminished responsibility.
Brown was sentenced to 24 years for manslaughter and a further two years for an offence of obstructing a coroner in the execution of his duty.
The move to block his release comes after a campaign by Ms Simpson’s best friend Hetti Barkworth-Nanton, and family, including her mother Diana Parkes, which was backed by Carrie Johnson, the wife of former prime minister Boris Johnson.
Carrie Johnson and Joanna Simpson’s friend Hetti Barkworth-Nanton (centre) in Westminster, London, for the launch of a campaign to prevent release of Robert Brown
“This is an appalling case,” said Mr Chalk. “Anybody who’s heard about the story of Robert Brown and Joanna Simpson cannot fail to be affected by the appalling nature of it and how harrowing it is.
“I pay tribute to Joanna’s mother and to Joanna’s friends for the tireless campaign they’ve made.”
He added: “I’ve made an undertaking to them that the facts, as I saw them were utterly, utterly appalling, and I said to them, I would do, as secretary of state, everything I lawfully and properly could to ensure that justice is done for them and indeed for society.
“I have looked very carefully at all the material in this case, I’ve done so personally and with care, and I have done what I said I would do, which is to take all the steps that I can. What happens hereafter is a matter for the parole board.”
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Robert Brown was ‘a danger to anybody he came in contact with’
The referral was made under “power to detain” provisions, which are designed to protect the public from dangerous offenders if they present a significant risk of causing serious harm which cannot be safely managed through usual licence conditions.
A decision on whether Brown will be released will be made by the Parole Board.
Paedophile Lostprophets singer Ian Watkins has died after being attacked in prison.
Watkins, 48, was serving a 29-year jail term for multiple sexual offences, including serious crimes against young children and babies at HMP Wakefield, in West Yorkshire.
He was attacked with a knife by another inmate on Saturday morning, sources have confirmed.
West Yorkshire Police said two men, aged 25 and 43, have been arrested on suspicion of murder.
A police van outside Wakefield prison. Pic: YappApp
Watkins was pronounced dead at the scene after prison staff reported the assault to police.
The prison went into lockdown in the immediate aftermath of the incident, sources added.
A Prison Service spokesperson said they could not comment while the police investigate.
Watkins was previously stabbed in an incident at the same prison in 2023, suffering non life-threatening injuries after he was reportedly taken hostage by three other inmates before being freed by prison officers six hours later.
He was sentenced in December 2013 to 29 years in prison, with a further six years on licence, after admitting 13 sex offences, including the attempted rape of a fan’s baby.
Watkins performing in 2004. Pic: PA
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He also encouraged a second fan to abuse her child during a webcam chat and secretly stashed child sexual abuse videos, some of which he had made himself.
At the time, police described him as a “committed, organised paedophile”.
Having found fame in Welsh rock band Lostprophets, Watkins was arrested after his Pontypridd home was searched on orders of a drug warrant in September 2012.
A large number of computers, mobile phones and storage devices were seized during the search.
When sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court, the singer was told he was being given an extended sentence – and a judge said his crimes “plumbed new depths of depravity”.
After being caught with a mobile phone behind bars in 2019, he told a court that he was locked up with “murderers, mass murderers, rapists, paedophiles, serial killers – the worst of the worst”.
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