The family of a north-east man murdered in a brutal hammer attack say they have been let down by the justice system after a key culprit who help planned the killing was freed early from jail – and is now living in their neighbourhood.
Christopher Hollinsworth conspired with his mum, Sharon, and half-sister Natalie to murder his father Andrew Oates and bury his trussed remains in a shallow grave in the back garden of his Peterhead home.
All three were jailed for the murder plot after confessing their crimes during a trial at the High Court in Edinburgh.
Sharon Hollinsworth, 46, was locked up for life and ordered to serve at least 11 years behind bars. Her daughter, who was 20-years-old at the time of the killing, was jailed for five years after admitting conspiracy to murder and attempting to defeat the ends of justice.
Yesterday, it emerged that Christopher Hollinsworth, who also admitted his role in the murder plot, has been released after serving just two years of his four year sentence. The 21-year-old has been housed at his maternal grandparents home in Peterhead, just yards from the home of Mr Oates’ sister, Morag Mitchell.
Conservative justice spokeswoman Margaret Mitchell last night described the situation as “jaw-dropping”.
It is devastating news for the murder victim’s family, who had earlier this year urged the parole board not to release Mr Hollinsworth back into Peterhead.
In a letter to the Victim Notification Scheme, they pleaded: “We as a family only request, even beg, that he is not allowed to be released into the town of Peterhead.
“Allowing this person back to the small community would do untold damage to our family.
“My family has been forever scarred by this. We have been through enough heartache. Please allow us – the victims – to continue healing without the wound being reopened.”
One of Mr Oates other sisters, Trina Stewart, who also stays in Peterhead, said yesterday: “We stupidly believed the justice system would show us compassion. We begged as a family not to have him come back here, but they didn’t listen.”
The family had previously fought for 15 months to have Mr Oates buried, after his son, as next of kin, refused to have his body released.
Mrs Stewart said the murder had been a “life sentence” for them. “We were put on a path we have to walk for the rest of our lives and it’s not a path of our choosing.
“You come to terms with the bereavement. I can speak about Andrew now and visit the cemetery but the trauma, no.”
Last night, Mrs Mitchell said: “This is another example of the concerns of the families of the victim being placed second to the rights of the criminal.
“While it is important that criminals are re-housed, this must be done sensibly and the lack of sensitivity in this case is jaw-dropping.”
Mr Oates was found in a bedroom at his house in Fairwinds Place, Peterhead, with his ankles and wrists bound together with cable ties. He was wrapped in a plastic sheet and duvet.
Sharon Hollinsworth had planned to bury him in the garden but instead confessed to police – claiming she had hit her partner because she feared for her children’s lives.
In court, Hollinsworth’s defence team painted Mr Oates as a violent bully, a description his family said they did not recognise.