Charles Manson granted license to marry 26-year-old Afton Elaine Burton

Mass murderer Charles Manson has reportedly been granted a license to marry a 26-year-old woman who has been visiting him in prison.

The marriage license was issued 10 days ago for Charles Manson, 80, and Afton Elaine Burton, the Associated Press reports.

Charles Manson is serving a life sentence for the murders of seven people and one unborn child in Los Angeles in 1969.

Their victims included pregnant actress Sharon Tate, wife of film director Roman Polanski.

Afton Elaine Burton, who calls herself Star, told AP that she and Charles Manson would marry next month. The license is reportedly valid for 90 days.

The cult leader and his followers, known as the Manson Family, stabbed and shot seven people in Los Angeles over two nights in August 1969 in an attempt to start a race war.

Charles Manson and three women accomplices were sentenced to death for the killings, but that was commuted in 1972 when California temporarily outlawed the death penalty.

In 2012, Charles Manson was refused parole by a Californian prison panel – it was the 12th time he had made a bid for freedom.

Charles Manson is not eligible to apply for parole again until 2027.