A female member of a sick family gang who kept a vulnerable man as a slave, torturing him for years before eventually killing him, has been moved to an open prison, the Comet has learned.

For many years, Michael Gilbert, 26, was kept as a slave by a family who regularly beat him, tortured him and forced him to sleep on the floor, handcuffed to a bed.

Mr Gilbert, who had learning difficulties and was homeless for some part of his life, was eventually murdered, decapitated and dismembered. His body parts were found in the Blue Lagoon in Arlesey in 2009.

The Comet: Michael Gilbert endured years of abuse before he was murdered.Michael Gilbert endured years of abuse before he was murdered. (Image: PA)

Some of the beatings Mr Gilbert suffered were filmed on mobile phones, Luton Crown Court heard during the murder trial. The prosecutor said the family enjoyed his humiliation, making it the subject of a "game show".

In 2010, Nichola Roberts, 22, was convicted of murder alongside James Watt, 27, and his girlfriend, 29-year-old Natasha Oldfield.

James's brother, Robert Watt, 20, and his mother, Jennifer Smith-Dennis, 58, were jailed for eight years and 10 years respectively for familial homicide.

A third brother, Richard Watt, 25, who was Roberts' boyfriend, was sentenced to six years in prison, having pleaded guilty to familial homicide.

Roberts served only 13 years of a life sentence when she was recommended for transfer to a Category D prison by the Parole Board.

These prisons have minimal security and allow eligible prisoners to spend most of their day away from the prison on licence to carry out work, education or for other resettlement purposes.

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A spokesperson for the Parole Board said: "The Parole Board refused the release of Nichola Roberts, but recommended a move to an open conditions prison following an oral hearing in December 2022. 

"This was a recommendation only, and the Secretary of State for Justice considers the advice before making the final decision on whether a prisoner is suitable for open conditions.  

"We will only make a recommendation for open conditions if a Parole Board panel is satisfied that the risk to the public has reduced sufficiently to be manageable in an open prison and if a transfer to open prison is considered to be essential to inform future decisions about release.   

"A move to open conditions involves testing the prisoner’s readiness for any potential return into the community in future. Prisoners moved to open conditions can be returned to closed conditions if there is concern about their behaviour.  

"Parole Board decisions are solely focused on what risk a prisoner could represent to the public. A panel will carefully examine a huge range of evidence, including details of the original crime, and any evidence of behaviour change, as well as explore the harm done and impact the crime has had on the victims.    

“Members read and digest hundreds of pages of evidence and reports in the lead up to an oral hearing. Evidence from witnesses including probation officers, psychiatrists and psychologists, officials supervising the offender in prison as well as victim personal statements are then given at the hearing.   

“The prisoner and witnesses are then questioned at length during the hearing, which often lasts a full day or more. Parole reviews are undertaken thoroughly and with extreme care. Protecting the public is our number one priority."