Across the Country, a Search is On for a Former Soldier Accused of terrorism Who Got Away from Prison on Wednesday Morning.
Daniel Abed Khalife, 21 years old, was in HMP Wandsworth prison in London. He was accused of putting fake bombs at a military base. People think he got out by hiding under a food delivery van. This has made security checks at airports and ports longer.
The prison staff and police are quickly trying to figure out how he got away. They think he started his escape from the prison’s kitchen around 07:50 BST.
Khalife is 6 feet 2 inches tall. When he was last seen, he was wearing a white T-shirt, red and white checkered pants, and tough brown boots.
Police say he’s not a big danger to the public, but they want people to call 999 if they see him, not approach him.
Khalife has been in the Army since 2019. He has connections to Kingston, London, and the North West, but they’re searching all over the country.
As the search goes on, there haven’t been any big breakthroughs. The police are asking the public for help, which might mean they haven’t found many leads.
Dominic Murphy, who leads the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command, said all police and border points are ready. They’ve asked airports and ports to do more security checks, which is making travel slower.
Murphy said they’re sending counter-terror officers all over London to look for Khalife. They’re worried he might leave the country.
Khalife used to be a soldier and was waiting for his trial for terrorism and Official Secrets Act crimes. This included getting ready for a terrorist act and collecting information for an enemy. They think he was working for a country that’s unfriendly to the UK.
In February, a court in Westminster heard that Khalife allegedly left fake dangerous items at MOD Stafford, where he worked. He wanted to make others believe the items could explode.
In a previous court appearance, it was mentioned that in 2021 he gathered personal information about soldiers, which could be helpful for someone planning a terrorist act.
People in the government are wondering if it was right for Khalife to be in a less secure prison like Wandsworth, instead of a high-security one like Belmarsh in London. Before, he had gone missing from his base on January 2nd after the alleged crimes. He was found and arrested on January 26th.
Khalife was not allowed to go free on bail. In July, when he appeared in court on a video call, he was in HMP Wandsworth, a category B prison.
The Labour shadow justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, thinks the government needs to explain why they can’t keep potentially dangerous criminals locked up.
Justice Secretary Alex Chalk is looking into the escape and wants to know if the prison was secure enough. He’s had two meetings with officials from the Prison and Probation Service and the governor of HMP Wandsworth. They’re figuring out why Khalife wasn’t in a higher security prison and if the right steps were taken when they realized he was missing.
The Prime Minister’s office is staying informed about the situation.
A spokesperson from the Prison Service said they’re doing an internal investigation. They want to understand the decisions about Khalife’s category and what happened that led to his escape.
Ian Acheson, who knows a lot about justice and has advised the government on counter-terrorism in prisons, thinks this escape is a very serious matter. He said that Wandsworth, a category B prison, isn’t the first choice for someone charged with terror offenses and who could be a big security risk for the country.
SOURCE:BBC