US EditionWandsworth prison's troubled history of overcrowding, escapes and mistaken releases
- Today, Justice Minister Alex Davies-Jones convened an urgent meeting of all prison governors in England and Wales after HMP Wandsworth mistakenly freed Brahim Kaddour-Cherif and William 'Billy' Smith in days.
- Amid a paper-based records system, officials point to surname-mix-ups and rising errors, with the Prison Governors Association noting 262 mistaken releases last year and an error rate around 0.5%.
- Investigations show clerical and court errors led to Brahim Kaddour-Cherif, 24, Algerian national and registered sex offender, freed on October 29 and William 'Billy' Smith, 35, fraudster, sentenced to 45 months, mistakenly released the same day.
- Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick accused Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Secretary David Lammy of a 'dereliction of duty' after Lammy declined to answer questions at DPMQs despite being briefed Tuesday night, while the Ministry of Justice blamed delays on a prison system crisis.
- Justice minister Alex Davies-Jones said a crack team of tech experts will digitise prisoner records and Dame Lynne Owens will lead a rapid review, while the PGA and police warn fixes need substantial investment and may increase short-term offending.
14 Articles
14 Articles
Associated Press News
Mistakenly released UK prisoner turns himself in as search continues for second freed convict
One of two inmates mistakenly released from a London prison has surrendered. Billy Smith returned to HMP Wandsworth on Thursday, three days after his accidental release.
Evening Standard
Prison governors in crisis talks as hunt continues for wrongly released inmates
Justice minister Alex Davies-Jones said she was furious about the situation.
Ellie Costello rips into Robert Jenrick for prisoner release: 'This happened under your watch too!'
GB News host Ellie Costello tore into Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick today, after he delivered a scathing critique of Labour for the accidental prisoner release.It emerged yesterday that two inmates were accidentally freed from HMP Wandsworth in London over the course of a single week, increasing scrutiny on Justice Secretary David Lammy.The errors come only weeks after Hadush Kebatu, a migrant sex offender who crossed to the UK on a sm…
Politics latest: Starmer says Lammy can 'speak for himself' on prisoner releases - adds situation is 'intolerable'
David Lammy has defended dodging questions on the mistakenly freed prisoner at PMQs on Wednesday, saying "it was the right judgement". Speaking from Brazil, the prime minister said he was "angry".
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