Fiona Barbieri: Killer out on parole eight years after stabbing policeman
Sydney mother Fiona Barbieri has walked free from prison following what has been described as a “deplorable” decision by parole authorities.
Police & Courts
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Convicted cop killer Fiona Barbieri has walked free on parole.
The schizophrenic Sydney woman’s son stabbed Inspector Bryson Anderson to death when he walked into their squalid home to sort out a volatile neighbourhood dispute eight years ago.
Mitchell Barbieri, then 19, is behind bars for at least 15 years for knifing the 45-year-old dad after the prosecution conceded he was affected by his mother’s paranoid delusions.
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Fiona Barbieri was sentenced to at least six years and six months in jail after pleading guilty to manslaughter over the violent 2012 stand-off.
That minimum term expired in June, but in May the State Parole Authority denied her freedom, citing a need for a further psychiatric report to determine a discharge plan before she could be considered for release.
She was granted parole at a public review hearing last Tuesday, and was released from the Bolwarra Transitional Centre over the weekend.
Located outside Emu Plains jail, the BTC is a residential facility for female offenders nearing the end of their sentences who are approved for day release.
Barbieri had been there since May, but COVID-19 restrictions had rendered day leave unavailable for all NSW prisoners.
An August Community Corrections report noted it would be suitable for Barbieri to live at her father’s unknown address, while she is banned from visiting the Hawkesbury region where the killing took place, as well as the Hills Shire, Parramatta City and Wollondilly Shire.
Barbieri’s matter was stood over until January when a parole progress report will be heard.
The SPA ruled Barbieri’s low risk of reoffending could be addressed through 18 parole conditions, adding any threat to community safety would be increased if she was released later with a shorter supervision period.
“She has been unfailingly compliant with mental health interventions,” SPA Chairman David Frearson SC said.
But the NSW police union said it was appalled by the “rushed” decision, which it branded as an insult to Insp Anderson’s memory.
“The part played by Fiona Barbieri in the senseless killing of a brave police officer by her son should see her remain behind bars until her maximum sentence expires in December 2022,” NSW Police Association President Tony King said.
“This decision is deplorable.”
Last week Barbieri apologised to Insp Anderson’s family, who had opposed her parole bid.
“On the 6th of December 2012, parents lost a son, a wife lost a husband and children lost their father, and the community lost a hard working, decorated police officer,” defence lawyer Stephen Alexander said last week.
“Ms Barbieri apologises to the family and friends of Insp Anderson… and is sorry for their loss.”