As Oliver Freckleton headed out to a house party in December 2021 his parents reminded him not to stay out late. 

He was due to go to a safari park with his girlfriend and their new baby the next day. He was about to turn 20 and his father, Rob, remembers they’d already laid out his birthday presents at their home in Burton-upon-Trent.

But that night they received a call that Oliver had been attacked. Rob’s wife and their younger son drove straight to the scene.

“They were greeted by armed police,” recalls Rob, who was on the phone to them throughout.

“My wife lay down on the floor… they were trying to resuscitate Oliver,” he says, choking back tears.

But there was nothing anyone could do. Oliver had been fatally stabbed. After 45 minutes he was pronounced dead.

“I remember just screaming and collapsing on the floor,” says Rob.

The family endured a three-month trial and one man, Chardon Carnagie, was convicted of Oliver’s murder.

Three other people were convicted of manslaughter. The shortest sentence – three years and seven months – was handed to Travel Reid, then 21.

But Rob says earlier this year, just two years after Oliver’s death, the family got a call to say Reid was out of prison.

Read more:
Prisoners to be released after serving 40% of sentence
Early release prisoner describes chaos

“He got released in January and it was end of February, beginning of March he got recalled for a breach of his license and we weren’t told what that breach was, but then we were told to do a report, an impact statement.

“We supplied the impact statements that we’d made in court and we added to them the effect that it’s had on us since, and the reasons why he should now serve the rest of his sentence in custody,” he says.

“And then we got a phone call saying ‘that’s not going to happen, we’re going to re-release him after 30 days’.”

Rob says it’s left his whole family shaken.

“I’m angry, obviously disappointed, disappointed in a system that, you know, you’re brought up to believe in.”

Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News

He believes the prison crisis has been “coming to a point for a very long time. Everyone’s known about it,” he says.

“Is the answer to release prisoners early? No, no it’s not.

Be the first to get Breaking News

Install the Sky News app for free

“What I say might be controversial but these prisoners, they’ve got rooms in their cells for televisions, luxuries. Take them out and put another bed in. I know there’s people out there saying that’s inhumane. So what? Really, so what?

“What has Oliver got now? What have our family got? What have these other victims’ families got?”

Related posts:

Scottish church lockdown worship ban unlawful, court rules Alex Salmond to take further legal action over ‘conduct’ of Scotland’s top civil servant ‘Significant development’ as 38-year-old man arrested over Sabina Nessa murder Man City star assaulted during burglary at his home Man stabbed to death near Oxford Street Briton released in Russia-Ukraine prisoner swap pictured with this family Pinterest ‘sorry’ Molly Russell was able to view online content linked to self-harm New COVID variant is fastest-growing strain in UK – as flu and coronavirus infections appear to stop rising TUC calls for chief executive pay and City bonuses to come down Politicians are drawn to WhatsApp – and it threatens us ever knowing the whole truth Photos released of police officer who died after being hit by train while helping ‘distressed’ man Cause of asylum seeker’s death on board Bibby Stockholm barge revealed by coroner