Ronnie Biggs was today formally freed from his prison sentence after being granted a compassionate release by the government.
It was the first time in 45 years that the Great Train Robber had been not wanted or imprisoned by the British state, but the joy of his family and supporters was tempered by the fact the 79-year-old is seriously ill and not expected to recover.
His son Michael waved the paperwork granting the release at journalists waiting outside Norfolk and Norwich hospital, where Biggs is being treated for pneumonia. Witnesses said prison guards left the hospital shortly after 2pm.
Michael: "As a family, we are absolutely thrilled. My father is now a free man. It was very emotional when the guards left. I had a private moment with my dad to thank him for sticking with it."
In 1964 Biggs was convicted of his part in the £2.6m robbery by a 15-strong gang, during which a train guard, Jack Mills, was beaten over the head. Biggs received a 30-year sentence but escaped from prison after 15 months and spent 30 years on the run in Australia and Brazil.
He voluntarily returned to Britain in 2001, and his health has worsened with a series of strokes. Tomorrow is Biggs's 80th birthday and the 46th anniversary of the robbery, which at the time was the biggest theft in British criminal history.
Michael Biggs said a duty prison governor outlined the terms and conditions of the release on licence to his father.
He said: "My father still has a sense of humour. He shook hands with the prison guards and then just waved them off with his hands. He will now be retreating fully from public life. This is not going to turn into a media circus."