THE FAMILY of Lynette White has criticised the decision to release Jeffrey Gafoor from prison after the Parole Board deemed him a “manageable risk to the community.”
A family member, who wished to remain anonymous, shared their disappointment: “Having been informed of the Parole Board’s decision to release Jeffrey Gafoor, I am deeply disheartened. Despite having mentally prepared for this outcome, given that it was his sixth application, I am profoundly disappointed by the apparent lack of attention to certain previously undisclosed factors. Jeffrey Gafoor’s diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder raises concerns about whether all relevant aspects were thoroughly evaluated in the decision-making process.
“Had the hearing been open to the public, there would have been greater transparency. I feel let down by the process, the broader system, and utterly betrayed by a justice system that appears to prioritise the offender over the rights of victims and the public’s rightful expectation of justice.
“Jeffrey Gafoor has served 21 years for murder – 17 years in a secure prison, and four years in open conditions. Yet, for 36 years, I and other victims of his heinous crime have endured immense suffering in countless ways, and now we are forced to confront the grim reality that he will soon walk free.”
On Valentine’s Day, 1988, Lynette White, aged 20, was brutally murdered in her flat on James Street, Butetown, Cardiff. She suffered over 50 stab wounds in a frenzied attack, which pathologist Bernard Knight described as having “mutilating” features
The subsequent police investigation would become infamous as one of the UK’s worst miscarriages of justice. Relying on dubious eyewitness accounts, police arrested five men, later known as the “Cardiff Five,” in December 1988. Three of them—Tony Paris, Yusef Abdullahi, and Stephen Miller—were convicted in 1990 after a trial marred by coerced confessions and lack of physical evidence. They were later exonerated in 1992 following appeals and public outcry
In 2003, advancements in forensic technology led to a breakthrough. DNA evidence from the crime scene, which matched a relative’s profile, led investigators to Jeffrey Gafoor. He was arrested and subsequently confessed to the murder, revealing a violent altercation over a £30 payment
Gafoor was sentenced to life imprisonment, with a minimum term of 13 years, after admitting to stabbing White over 50 times
The Parole Board’s recent decision to release Gafoor after his sixth review has stirred fresh distress among Lynette White’s family and those wrongfully convicted. They now face the challenge of coming to terms with the Parole Board’s ruling and its implications for the community.
