The murderer of renowned musician John Lennon, Mark David Chapman, told parole officials during a hearing before being denied prison release for a fifth time that he was feeling shame and regret for taking the life of the ex-Beatles member 28 years ago.

The 53-year-old man was interrogated by the parole board on August 12 and a transcription of the hearing was published yesterday. He said that in time he had become conscious of the severity of his deeds and of how they affected the victim and everybody who knew him.

“I recognized that that 25-year-old man, I don’t think he really appreciated the life that he was taking, that this was a human being,” he said in the comments released on Tuesday. “I feel now at 53, I have grown into a deeper understanding of what a human life is. I have changed a lot,” Mark David Chapman said, according to the transcript. “I am ashamed. That is my first thought. I am sorry for what I did.”

Moreover, he confirmed his previous confessions regarding his reasons of killing the rock legend. He said he was looking for fame and recognition when he took the decision of killing Lennon. “I would be something other than a nobody, and that was my reasoning at the time,” Chapman said.

Chapman has been kept in imprisonment for almost 28 years. He was sentenced to 20 years to life after pleading guilty to the killing. He was denied release and the parole board decision indicates that he will continue to stay in custody in New York’s Attica Correctional Facility for at least two more years, “due to concern for the public safety and welfare,” according to The Associated Press.

On December 8, 1980, Chapman fired five hollow point bullets, four of which hit Lennon’s back and shoulder, in front of the musician’s wife, Yoko Ono.

Mark David Chapman’s next hearing is programmed for August 2010.