Katie Piper’s acid attacker has been freed from prison.
Stefan Sylvestre attacked the Strictly Come Dancing contestant when she was 24-years-old, leaving her partially blind and with permanent scarring.
Piper’s ex-boyfriend, Daniel Lynch, had hired Sylvestre to throw sulphuric acid over the model. He was jailed for life in 2009 with a minimum sentence of six years.
A parole board confirmed that Sylvestre was no longer a danger to society earlier this year. He was released from prison on Wednesday.
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Sky News reports that Sylvestre is permitted to return to London where he carried out the attack, but that his licence restrictions do not allow him within a certain distance of Piper’s home.
Earlier today, the philanthropist shared a stream of inspirational quotes on Instagram. She also thanked her followers for their messages of support and for wishing her a happy birthday.
She wrote:
“Thank you for all the messages, birthday wishes and encouragement for tonight, very kind of you all!
“Using mediation to stay calm and centred today. See you on the ballroom floor tonight.”
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Sylvestre’s parole panel said that there were “… a number of things that reduced Mr Sylvestre’s risk of causing serious harm in the future.”
“He has repaired his relationship with his family, has gained employment-related skills and improved his education.
“He has not been involved in drugs in prison and has completed relevant offence-focused work to challenge and change his attitude and thinking.”
Piper will be performing on Strictly Come Dancing tonight at 6.40 on BBC1.
