Only man convicted of murdering Leeds University student Meredith Kercher is released

The only person convicted in the 2007 murder of University of Leeds student Meredith Kercher has been freed after serving most of his 16-year prison sentence.
By Georgina Morris
Published 23rd Nov 2021, 17:38 BST
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Italian news agencies LaPresse and ANSA quoted lawyer Fabrizio Ballarini as saying that Rudy Guede’s release, planned for January 4, had been moved up a few weeks by a judge, and he was freed on Tuesday.

Guede had already been granted permission to leave prison during the day to work while he served his sentence for the murder of 21-year-old Ms Kercher.

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The case in the university city of Perugia gained international notoriety after Ms Kercher’s American roommate, Amanda Knox, and Knox’s then-boyfriend were placed under suspicion.

Meredith Kercher was a student at the University of Leeds. Picture: PAMeredith Kercher was a student at the University of Leeds. Picture: PA
Meredith Kercher was a student at the University of Leeds. Picture: PA

Both were initially convicted, but Italy’s highest court threw out the convictions in 2015 after a series of flip-flop decisions.

Guede was originally convicted in a fast-track trial procedure. He has denied killing Ms Kercher.

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