Child murderer and rapist to be released from prison in a month

A NSW man who brutally murdered a little boy and raped another is set to be released from prison after spending 26 years behind bars.

A man who brutally murdered a six-year-old boy and raped another young child is set to walk free from prison in just a few weeks’ time.

Phillip Wayne Lett has spent 26 and a half years behind bars for kidnapping and murdering Damien Noyes in Penrith, Sydney in 1992. He also raped another young boy between 1988 and 1992.

On June 23 the now 58-year-old is expected to be released from jail.

Three days before Christmas, Lett lured Damien, 6, from the park across the road from his house in Whalan, where he was playing with his two younger brothers.

Six-year-old Damien Noyes was kidnapped and murdered just days before Christmas.

He drove the boy to the car park at Penrith railway station. When they got there Damien told Lett he wanted to go home and started punching him.

He then strangled the child, threw him out of the car and drove over him multiple times.

Damien’s naked body was found dumped in the car park the next morning, with his underpants and shorts tied around his neck.

Lett was not known to the family at the time of the attack and was arrested the day after the child’s body was found.

He later claimed he had abducted the boy for sexual reasons but “could not go through with it”.

There were no signs that Damien had been sexually assaulted.

Lett is set to be released after spending more than 26 years behind bars.

In March 1944, Lett was sentenced to 26 years and six months in prison, with a minimum sentence of 19 and a half years.

After he was sentenced, Damien’s mum, Bridget Coen, read a message to her son’s murderer.

“I pray that your sins will torment you for the rest of your pitiful life,” she said outside of court.

Lett was beaten up so badly by other inmates while he was in custody waiting to be sentenced, that he spent the rest of his term in protective custody.

Now in just one month he will walk free, though he will be closely monitored by authorities.

NSW Supreme Court Justice Helen Wilson on Wednesday ordered he be closely supervised on release and assessed by two qualified experts.

The 54-part order also prevents — except with explicit permission from his supervisor — Lett from joining social media, leaving home between 10pm and 6am or going to a string of places where children frequent.

Damien’s mum, Bridget, read an emotional statement directed at Lett outside of court.

Those locations include schools, theme parks, cinemas, libraries, museums, pools, parks and caravan parks.

According to a psychiatrist's report, Lett did not ask for parole during his sentence because his crimes were so horrific that he didn’t “deserve it for what he did”.

A post-mortem exam found Damien had drowned in his own blood as a result of the strangulation. He also had a broken jaw, broken leg, broken ribs and tyre marks across his stomach.

The recent report by Dr Scott Clark also found the defendant appeared anxious about the end of his sentence and had said he didn’t want to leave custody as he “feels safe there from drugs, alcohol and his anger”, the judge said.

Lett had previously refused parole because he didn’t feel he deserved it.

Justice Wilson said there was no question Lett’s crimes were “gravely serious” but he had done all asked of him in custody to address his conduct.

“Insofar as a sentence of imprisonment can rehabilitate a prisoner who has committed terrible crimes of the nature committed by the defendant, he has achieved that level of rehabilitation,” she said.

However, she noted the highly regulated prison life was quite different to being in the community.

“If the risk that exists manifests, the consequences would be too terrible to ignore,” Justice Wilson said.