Frail Ronnie Biggs ‘could die’, claims his son

A new photograph of Ronnie Biggs shows the ailing Great Train Robber lying in his hospital bed.

Biggs, 79, who was refused parole last week, is being treated at the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital after being moved from a nearby prison.

In the picture, sent to MPs by his legal adviser Giovanni Di Stefano, he appears frail with his arms heavily bandaged and tongue lolling out of the side of his mouth. His son, Michael, said Biggs had pneumonia, plus fractures of the hip, pelvis and spine and could die if he does not respond to treatment.

He has suffered three strokes and cannot eat, speak or walk, according to Mr Di Stefano.

Justice Secretary Jack Straw rejected a parole board recommendation that Biggs be released, saying he was "wholly unrepentant" about his crimes.

The decision means Biggs will not be free to celebrate his 80th birthday on 8  August, 46 years to the day since Biggs and a 15-man gang stole £2.6 million from the Glasgow to London mail train.