Prison authorities know there are hanging points in cells. Prisoners keep using them
Karen and Gary's son, Luke Rich, died in an ACT prison one day after he was remanded in custody when he hung himself from a hanging point on a door in his cell. He was 27 years old. Prison authorities had been warned that point could be used for that exact purpose seven years earlier. Guardian Australia investigative reporters Chris Knaus and Ariel Bogle looked into 248 hanging deaths in every prison system in the country over more than two decades, finding at least 57 Australians were able to kill themselves using hanging points that prison authorities knew about but failed to remove
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The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
British teenager Marcus Fakana jailed in Dubai over sex with girl, 17, pleads for clemency
A British teenager who is in prison in Dubai for having sex with a 17-year-old girl has written to authorities asking for clemency. Markus Fakana, now 19, was on a holiday in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) when he struck up a holiday romance with the British girl who was staying at the same hotel. The girl's mother reported Fakana, who was 18 at the time, to local authorities after discovering messages between the teenagers, and Fakana was arrested. The age of consent in the UAE is 18, and in December, he was sentenced to a year in prison over the encounter. The BBC reports that Fakana has written to the UAE's vice president and prime minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum from Al-Awir prison, asking to be released. Radha Stirling, founder of Detained in Dubai, told the BBC it had been 'the most traumatic and life-altering experience imaginable for Marcus,' adding he had never intended to break the law. "Marcus is struggling, and this experience will leave a permanent scar," Ms Stirling said. "We implore Sheikh Mohammed and the government of Dubai to hear his pleas and let him come home." Ms Stirling told the BBC that parents needed to be aware that behaviour that would not be considered criminal in the UK could lead to criminal charges in the UAE, including drinking alcohol or certain social media activity. The UAE has only recently made sex outside of marriage legal for tourists, but under UAE law the 17-year-old girl was a minor and her mother, her legal guardian, filed the complaint against Fakana. 'What happened was legal in the UK and consensual. But now he is facing permanent damage to his mental health and future prospects because of it,' Ms Stirling said, adding that it was a 'heartbreaking way to begin adulthood'. "If Marcus could go back in time, he would. He has shown remorse and fully respects the laws of the UAE. He only hopes the government will show compassion and allow him to return home to rebuild his life," she continued. Fakana's parents have appealed to the British Embassy in Dubai, Foreign Secretary David Lammy, and the Foreign Office for help advocating for his release. A Foreign Office spokesperson said: 'We are supporting a British man in the UAE and are in contact with his family.' Consular officials are understood to be in regular contact with Fakana, his family and his legal team. Mr Lammy said: 'It would not be appropriate for me to comment on any individual case, except to say that, of course, as you would expect his family have had all the full support available.' At the time of his sentencing, a UAE government spokesperson said: 'Dubai's legal system is committed to protecting the rights of all individuals and ensuring impartial judicial proceedings.'
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
MMA fighter who starred in Channel 4 show is facing jail for a second time – after previously throttling ex
A THUG MMA fighter who starred in a Channel 4 show is facing jail for a second time after previously attacking his ex. Demornia Cantrill spoke about his upbringing in foster care on 2015 doc Kicked Out Kids. 1 He told the show: "I want to prove to everybody that says I'm just going to be a drug dealer or in prison - I want to prove them wrong and show that just because I had a s*** upbringing doesn't mean I can't change it." But Cantrill has now pleaded guilty to possessing class A diamorphone - a prescription only opiod - with intent to supply and possession of cannabis. The 28-year-old is now facing a prison sentence when he returns to court in July for sentencing. Cantrill was previously locked up in 2020 after he attacked his ex-girlfriend at her home. Tyra Campbell was left fearing for her life when she was choked until she could barely breathe. As she called 999, Cantrill chillingly told her: "Snitches get stitches". At time, he was subject to a community order over an attack on his own mum and an assault on police. Cantrill was placed into care as a baby but left aged 17 to become a MMA fighter. He also went into the army for two years and also worked as a teaching assistant. In the latest hearing at Plymouth Crown Court, Judge Robert Linford said he recognised Cantrill's name and remembered the TV programme about him. Cantrill told him he is a member of a boxing club in Manchester that is trying to teach kids to deal with problems in a "fist fight rather than with knives and guns". He has been remanded into custody ahead of sentencing.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
How another Labor immigration blunder has allowed a vile child sex offender to remain in Australia
The Albanese government took too long to scrap the visa of a migrant who performed an indecent act in front of a child, so he can stay in Australia, a court has ruled. The Federal Court decision is the latest in a string of immigration policy blunders to weigh on the party since 2023 - causing ex-Immigration Minister Andrew Giles to be demoted - though it seems it didn't harm Labor's performance at the March election. Federal Court judge Christopher Horan found a decision to deport the man, known as XMBQ, was unlawful because there was an 'unreasonable' delay between the appeals tribunal deciding the man could stay and termination of his visa. The ruling, first reported by The Australian, could set a precedent requiring immigration ministers to make decisions within a particular timeframe. Giles - now replaced by Tony Burke - previously came under fire for being caught off guard by the High Court's ruling in November 2023 that indefinite immigration detention was illegal, resulting in the release of more than a hundred criminals. Later, he was criticised over his Ministerial guideline, known as Direction 99, that stated a migrant's family connections to Australia and how long they have lived here should be considered in potential deportation cases, despite a criminal's rap sheet. Giles moved to cancel dozens of visas after it emerged that violent offenders were using the measure to avoid deportation. In the latest case XMBQ, a Somali man, had convictions for kicking a police officer in the face and performing a sex act in front of a 29-year-old woman and a 13-year-old girl on public transport. Lawyers for XMBQ challenged whether the former Immigration Minister's intervention in his case was legal. Giles cancelled the Somali man's visa on June 8, 2024 after the Administrative Appeals Tribunal decided he should be allowed to stay in April 2021. Justice Horan said the delay between the appeal and Giles's decision was far too long, ruling in the favour of XMBQ. 'If the minister is to exercise the power to set aside the original decision and cancel the visa, the minister must do so within a reasonable time,' the judgment said. 'Otherwise, the connection with the original decision as the object of the power will be lost, and it can no longer be said that the minister is addressing or responding to the state of affairs produced by or resulting from the original decision.' Immigration law specialist Simon Jeans said that although Giles had the power to cancel this visa it 'was a risk' and a 'decision [made] in haste' as he was under pressure to save his job. He suggested it would have been less risky for the Immigration Department to cancel XMBQ's visa rather than the minister intervening. XMBQ was born in Somalia in the 1960s before fleeing to Lebanon in 1993. He arrived in Australia as a refugee in 2004. XMBQ was placed on the sex offenders register for 15 years after pleading guilty to the public exposure charges in June 2017. In December 2017, his visa was cancelled by a delegate of the immigration minister but this was later overturned in the Federal Court. Lawyers for the man claimed Giles's decision to cancel his visa had been impacted by XMBQ being charged with two counts of rape, although he was not convicted. Justice Horan rejected this claim. The Albanese government and Mr Giles suffered a similar blow in January this year when a Bhutan-born man who attacked his wife with a meat cleaver was allowed to remain in Australia by the Federal Court. It ruled Mr Giles had made multiple 'jurisdictional errors' by overturning an appeals decision that the man could remain in Australia, because he did not consider the effect of deportation on his children and his stateless person status.
