Victor Chang killer Liew freed on parole

19 Sep 2012, 6:49 pm   -   Source: AAP
The man who killed renowned Sydney heart surgeon Dr Victor Chang in 1991 has been granted parole. (AAP)

The man who killed renowned Sydney heart surgeon Dr Victor Chang in 1991 has been granted parole. (AAP)

The man who killed renowned Sydney heart surgeon Victor Chang has been granted parole after 21 years in prison.

The man who shot dead world-renowned Sydney heart surgeon Victor Chang has been granted parole after spending 21 years in jail, but NSW Attorney-General Greg Smith hopes to block his release.

Mr Smith said he was seeking advice about appealing the release of Chiew Seng Liew, 69, after the State Parole Authority (SPA) granted him parole at a public hearing on Wednesday.

"We tried hard to stop this, we fought against it," Mr Smith told reporters at NSW Parliament.

"I think we can go for a judicial review. I think we'd probably have to show an error of law."

Mr Smith expected to have the advice within a week, "so [a decision] won't be long after that".

The Chang family were "devastated" by the decision to free Liew, a representative of the family said.

The Malaysian national gunned down Dr Chang in the northern Sydney suburb of Mosman in 1991 in a bungled attempt to kidnap him for ransom.

Liew suffers from the neuro-degenerative diseases Parkinson's and dementia, and looked frail but resolute when he appeared on Wednesday before the parole authority via video link.

His right arm quivered at times.

The authority's chairman, Judge Ian Pike, said Liew's poor health was a factor but not the sole reason for granting parole.

Liew did not complete an offender's program during his 21 years in custody but was deemed ineligible due to his deteriorating condition.

Judge Pike also considered submissions from the Chang family.

"While the whole of Australia and beyond mourned the loss of one who had made such a contribution to the nation's health, his family would have been distraught with grief at their personal loss," Judge Pike said.

Before handing down the authority's determination, Liew attempted to speak through a Cantonese interpreter before Judge Pike cut him off.

"Just a few sentences to ask the court for leniency," Liew said.

Liew's solicitor said time was running out for his client.

"The state is playing Russian roulette with his medical condition," Will Hutchins, of the Prisoners' Legal Service, told the hearing.

"The state wants his illness to deteriorate to such a point that he becomes unfit to travel."

Representing the attorney-general, Paul Menzies, QC, said there was no evidence that Liew's medical condition was deteriorating, and he should be denied parole.

"The time has not yet arrived to grant this offender parole," Mr Menzies said.

Howard Brown of the Victims Of Crime Assistance League NSW told reporters outside the hearing the Chang family were "absolutely devastated by this outcome".

"They have absolutely no faith in the administration of justice in this state."

Dr Chang carried out Australia's first successful heart transplant on 14-year-old Fiona Coote in 1984.

Liew and his co-offender Phillip Choon Tee Lim were sentenced to maximum terms of 26 years and 24 years, respectively, for the murder.

One of them dropped his wallet in the street where the shooting took place.

Liew completed his minimum sentence of 20 years on July 12, 2011, but the authority denied him release.

He had been in Australia just 14 months before committing the crime and learned about Dr Chang from a newspaper.

The co-accused Lim was granted parole after serving his minimum 18-year sentence, which expired in November 2009.

Liew is due to be released between October 3 and October 10, when the Department of Immigration is expected to arrange for his deportation.

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