Convicted rapist and killer Paul Bernardo has been denied early release.
Bernardo has spent more than 25 years of his life sentence behind bars for kidnapping, torturing and killing two teen girls in the early 1990s.
Among his brutal acts, Bernardo and his then-wife Karla Homolka kidnapped, tortured and killed Leslie Mahaffy, 14, of Burlington, Ont., in June 1991 at their home in Port Dalhousie, Ont., before dismembering her body, encasing her remains in cement and dumping them in a nearby lake.
Mahaffy's mother, Debbie Mahaffy, described the crushing pain the parole hearing had rekindled, saying the "unspeakable and brutally sadistic acts" Bernardo committed defied description.
Bernardo also tortured and killed Kristen French, 15, of St. Catharines, Ont., in April 1992 after keeping her captive for three days. Kristen's mother, Donna French, argued Bernardo should never see freedom again.
"How does one describe such immeasurable pain so as to give even the slightest understanding of the overwhelming sadness, the emptiness, and pain we feel even after 26 years of dealing with our loss?" French said.
Bernardo told the hearing he did dreadful things in the past that he cries over frequently, and argued he has improved himself.
He was adamant he would never reoffend, saying he's nice to everybody and there's no reason to be scared of him
The panel disagreed with the designated dangerous offender, who has been eligible for parole since February.
— with files from The Canadian Press and CTV News