UK's Open Prison's hold 728 sex offenders caged for rape and murder
UK’s Open Prison system holds 728 sex offenders caged for rape and murder with two breakouts in last year alone resulting in one dangerous offender still being at large
- EXCLUSIVE: 728 sex offenders are currently being housed in UK Open Prisons
- Some have been convicted of murder and the rape of children
- In the last year two dangerous sex offenders absconded from the same prison
There are currently 728 prisoners housed in the UK open prison system who are on the sex offender register for crimes including rape and murder and in the past year alone two have absconded – with one currently still at large.
In February 2022, rapist Paul Robson broke out of HMP North Sea Camp in Lincolnshire sparking a nationwide manhunt before he was found four days later in Skegness.
Just 9 months later Paul Marshall who was caged for life for raping and wounding with intent also broke out of HMP North Sea Camp- he is still wanted by police.
Over the years, many dangerous sex offenders including serial rapist Alan Wilmott and killer Darren Jackson have taken advantage of Open Prisons, also known as classification D sites, which have minimal security for inmates who are often allowed out of the compound for most of the day for work and education.
In England and Wales there are 15 open prison facilities for men and women.
There are currently 728 registered sex offenders housed in the UK’s open prisons
HMP North Sea Camp has seen numerous prisoners abscond over the years
The open facility which currently houses the most sex offenders is HMP Haverigg in Cumbria which counts 273 inmates on the register.
Currently there are 12 female sex offenders housed equally in the two women only open prisons: HMP Aksham Grange and HMP East Sutton Park.
In Wales, there are currently 11 housed in HMP Prescoed.
MailOnline also asked the Ministry of Justice to provide a breakdown of the crimes that the inmates had committed to earn their imprisonment.
The data showed that the most common offence was rape of a female over the age of 16 with 132 instances.
There were also 131 instances of sexual assault of a female child under the age of 13.
86 inmates had also been found guilty of raping a female child under 16.
Seventeen had been locked up for obscene publications including indecent photographs of children and five had been caged for sexual grooming.
Meanwhile, fifteen inmates in the open prison minimum security prisons had been found guilty of murder.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Justice said: ‘Public protection is our priority and offenders held in open prisons are carefully risk assessed and face strict conditions.
‘Those who breach them will be returned to open conditions.
‘Last year, the Deputy Prime Minister introduced greater scrutiny of Parole Board recommendations on open prison moves and may reject a recommendation unless prisoners can demonstrably pass a tough three-step test, including proving they are highly unlikely to abscond; that the move is essential for them to work towards future release; and the move would not undermine public confidence in the wider criminal justice system.’
Five sex offenders and murderers who absconded from UK Open Prisons
Paul Marshall
Rapist Paul Marshall is still at large after walking out of HMP North Sea Camp last year
In November 2022, rapist Paul Marshall escaped from HMP North Camp in Lincolnshire.
The 53-year-old was jailed for life after being found guilty of rape and wounding with intent but was placed in the category D open prison before absconding last year.
Despite police appeals and being caught on CCTV in Doncaster, Marshall has still not been located and Lincolnshire Police now accept he could be anywhere.
Speaking to the Lincolnite in January, Boston MP Matt Warman said that the fact Marshall had escaped was a failure of the system.
He said: ‘The whole point about this system is it only works if people who are given that degree of trust that comes with being in an open prison, respect it, and clearly the last few very public cases that we’ve had demonstrate that the system has failed by definition.
‘You need to set that against the fact that overall the level of absconding is at historically low levels.
‘We’ve recently tightened up the system, so that it’s harder to transfer more serious prisoners into open conditions.
‘So it is a problem, it is a sign of failure, but we should also bear in mind that this the first time it’s happened since the system was tightened up.’
Police advise anyone who thinks they spot Marshall to call the authorities and not approach him.
Paul Robson
For four days and nights, 56-year-old Paul Robson, serving two life sentences, was on the loose after absconding from open prison HMP North Sea Camp in Boston, Lincolnshire
For four days and nights last February, 56-year-old Robson, serving two life sentences, was on the loose after absconding from HMP North Sea Camp.
The monster was jailed after preying on women and children all his life with multiple sexual assaults dating back to the 1980s.
He had released from prison on licence for just three weeks when, in 2000, a woman in her late 20s awoke to discover Robson holding her down and tying her hands.
She was blindfolded, her pyjamas were ripped off and a knife was held to her throat. Robson then assaulted her in the most vile way.
After he had left, the victim, sobbing and shaking, lay silently in her bed for up to an hour, before running to the bathroom and locking herself in, because Robson had threatened to return if she called the police.
He would eventually receive two life sentences for two counts of attempted rape and two eight-year terms for two counts of ‘particularly repellent indecent assault’.
But on February 13 last year, Robson simply cycled out of the entrance on a stolen bike some time between the final roll call after putting his bedclothes under his covers to give the impression he was still there.
Considered ‘extremely dangerous’ by police, he was arrested following a nationwide manhunt – his bid for freedom ending in Skegness.
Alan Wilmott
In 2015, sex offender Alan Wilmot walked out of HMP North Sea Camp and raped a woman
In 2015, serial rapist Alan Wilmot raped a 27-year-old woman in her home at knifepoint while on day release from HMP North Sea Camp.
The 20-stone sex attacker, who was already serving life for past crimes, went to his victim’s home armed with rope and a knife hidden in a rucksack.
He stripped down to his prison issue blue boxer shorts, before raping the bound woman in front of her close friend, who he also tied up and forced to watch.
The former labourer was jailed for life at the age of 21 in October 1987 for robbing and raping four women in West London.
He had found his fifth victim’s contact details in an online advert she had placed to sell a dog.
Following the crime, Wilmot was given another life sentence.
Darren Jackson
Convicted murderer Darren Jackson absconded from HMP Sudbury for three days
In 2016, convicted murderer Darren Jackson absconded from HMP Sudbury in Derbyshire in what was his second escape of his spell in prison.
Jackson was jailed for life at Manchester Crown Court in March 1986 for stamping to death mother-of-three Gill Ellis after she was robbed at a Christmas party in Burnley, Lancashire.
In August 1997, he had escaped from the medium-security Ranby Prison, near Nottingham.
He went on the run for three days before he made his way back to the area, giving himself up in Nelson.
Thankfully two days after his second escape, he was also detained – that time by police in the Staffordshire Moorlands area.
Graham Dean
Murderer Graham Dean spent three years on the run in the 2000s after leaving Prescoed prison
From 2006 to 2010, killer Graham Dean spent years on the run from authorities after absconding from Prescoed Prison in Monmouthshire.
Dean was convicted of murder of his father after a trial at Newport Crown Court, South Wales, in November 1981, and jailed for life.
He had admitted hitting his father over the head with a fire grate before dragging him upstairs and strangling him.
After being released on license in 1991, Dean was recalled to prison in 1996 for parole breaches.
After three years on the run, he was eventually arrested in Bristol.
Source: Read Full Article