Denise Welch says ‘this is why women die’ as stalker set for early prison release

Denise Welch has slammed the decision to give her stalker an early prison release.

The Loose Women panellist has questioned whether the criminal justice system is considering her.

‘The stalker who set fire to my property, who came to my house with knives – who could have killed me or a member of my family or the brave woman who came to help – is getting out of prison soon, and I am f***ing terrified,’ Denise, 66, fumed to Mail+.

‘And whose human rights is the system concerned with? His. Not mine. His rights trump mine. This is how it is. And this is why women die.’

Denise added that she is ‘f*****g sick’ of women having to live in fear due to legal decisions.

Toraq Wyngard, 55, previously admitted to stalking the actress and causing serious alarm or distress for offences that occurred between September 18, 2020, and February 11, 2021.

On September 19, 2020, Wyngard started a fire in a skip outside the home Welch shares with her husband, Lincoln Townley, in Cheshire. The blaze caused £4,285 of damage after it spread to the house’s garage.

Wyngard was arrested nearby wearing a cap, and police discovered a 4in (10cm) kitchen knife in his rucksack.

The court heard that he claimed to be a press photographer and police found two cameras in his bag.

On February 10, 2021, while Wyngard was released under investigation, Welch and Townley discovered the words ‘Witch’ and ‘Pimp’ along with an upside-down cross had been scrawled on their front gate in blue marker pen, the court was told.

Denise said she had never met Wyngard prior to the instances. He was jailed for seven years and seven months in 2022.

At the time of his arrest, Denise summarised the impact of the crime on her circumstances.

‘It has changed my life. I have a wonderful life and this man has permanently scarred it,’ she stated.

She has since said that her mental health has been negatively affected, and she’s spent thousands on security to feel safer.

Her husband, painter Lincoln, 51, said during the court case: ‘My family mean everything to me and the thought of not being able to protect them from this experience has left me feeling powerless and angry.’

Prisoners can serve half their sentence if they demonstrate good behaviour in jail. Denise has claimed she has been contacted to be informed that his case is being looked at, and he’s due for release in December.

Denise doesn’t want Wyngard to stay in prison forever, but she is concerned that he hasn’t shown remorse.

‘I’ve been able to go to bed for the last few years knowing that this man was safely behind bars, but one night in December, he won’t be,’ she said.