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North Wales Live
13-05-2025
- North Wales Live
One of Wales' most notorious paedophiles has died in prison
A notorious child sex offender has died in prison. Former Wrexham care home owner John Allen spent 11 years behind bars for offences carried out over "several decades". In court he was labelled a 'predatory paedophile' who committed 'seriously depraved behaviour'. Allen, who ran several Bryn Alyn community children's homes in Wrexham, was serving a life sentence for child sex abuse. HM Prison Service has confirmed he died at HMP Bure, a prison for sex offenders. He was aged 83. A spokesperson said: 'HMP Bure prisoner John Allen died on May 3, 2025. As with all deaths in custody, the Prison and Probation Ombudsman will investigate.' Allen set up the children's homes in 1968 and ran them for 20 years. Bryn Alyn became one of the UK's largest providers of residential care for children, at one point accommodating more than 150 youngsters from around the UK at 11 properties. Many were subjected to repeated abuse. In 2014, Allen was jailed for life, with a minimum of 11 years, for 33 sex offences committed between 1976 and 1992. Further victims then came forward and he was found guilty in December 2019 of seven counts of indecent assault and one of a serious sexual offence against children. Jailing him for a further 14-and-a-half years, judge Rhys Rowlands told Mold Crown Court that Allen had shown 'sheer wickedness' by taking advantage of children in his care. He was arrested as part of Operation Pallial, an independent investigation launched in 2012 by the National Crime Agency (NCA) into allegations of past abuse in the care system in North Wales. By January 2020, 375 people had come forward with information, leading to 13 convictions. The NSPCC said Allen had conducted a 'reign of terror over a dark period of several decades'. His actions, added the children's charity, put him 'high up the scale of the most prolific child abusers of recent times'.
Wales Online
13-05-2025
- Wales Online
One of Wales' most notorious paedophiles has died in prison
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info A notorious child sex offender has died in prison. Former Wrexham care home owner John Allen spent 11 years behind bars for offences carried out over "several decades". In court he was labelled a 'predatory paedophile' who committed 'seriously depraved behaviour'. Allen, who ran several Bryn Alyn community children's homes in Wrexham, was serving a life sentence for child sex abuse. HM Prison Service has confirmed he died at HMP Bure, a prison for sex offenders. He was aged 83. A spokesperson said: 'HMP Bure prisoner John Allen died on May 3, 2025. As with all deaths in custody, the Prison and Probation Ombudsman will investigate.' Allen set up the children's homes in 1968 and ran them for 20 years. Bryn Alyn became one of the UK's largest providers of residential care for children, at one point accommodating more than 150 youngsters from around the UK at 11 properties. Many were subjected to repeated abuse. In 2014, Allen was jailed for life, with a minimum of 11 years, for 33 sex offences committed between 1976 and 1992. Further victims then came forward and he was found guilty in December 2019 of seven counts of indecent assault and one of a serious sexual offence against children. Jailing him for a further 14-and-a-half years, judge Rhys Rowlands told Mold Crown Court that Allen had shown 'sheer wickedness' by taking advantage of children in his care. Sign up now for the latest news on the North Wales Live Whatsapp community He was arrested as part of Operation Pallial, an independent investigation launched in 2012 by the National Crime Agency (NCA) into allegations of past abuse in the care system in North Wales. By January 2020, 375 people had come forward with information, leading to 13 convictions. The NSPCC said Allen had conducted a 'reign of terror over a dark period of several decades'. His actions, added the children's charity, put him 'high up the scale of the most prolific child abusers of recent times'. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox Find crime figures for your area
The Guardian
08-05-2025
- The Guardian
Gangs hold such influence over jails ‘it keeps me awake at night', says Timpson
Organised criminal gangs who 'corrupt' staff and enforce drug debts with violence hold such a huge influence over jails across England and Wales that it 'keeps me awake at night', the prisons minister has said. James Timpson told the Guardian that Prison Service staff who worked with criminal gangs to smuggle drugs and contraband into jails were being targeted by a 'beefed up' counter-corruption unit that last year prosecuted 37 officers. His comments follow deepening concerns from prison watchdogs that criminal gangs are taking control of prisons – a claim Lord Timpson rejects. Criminologists have said the gangs are targeting and corrupting inexperienced officers. Timpson said in an interview: 'Serious organised crime is a big problem, a huge problem, and it's one of the things that keeps me awake at night, because of the impact it has on a prison's environment, from drugs, debt, violence and everything that goes with that. 'They [organised criminal gangs] corrupt both men and women to bring in drugs. And a lot of these serious organised criminals are in their cells at night, they're actually very, very wealthy people and are connected with very big illegal businesses.' Police and the National Crime Agency were working with the counter-corruption unit to identify connections between gangs and prison officers, he said, while HM Prison and Probation Service had funded 20 specialist police investigators. He said: 'The unit has been beefed up, and it needs to be, because it's an increasing problem … Through our counter-corruption unit, we have found people who are bringing in drugs and contraband.' Timpson, the former chief executive of Timpson Group, the retailer that provides key cutting and shoe repair services, was speaking as more than 30 companies, including Microsoft and Google, prepared to meet the government on Thursday to explore how technology could help monitor offenders in the community more effectively and tackle violence in prison. Timpson said AI could be used to ease the heavy workload of probation officers who at present spend 'so much time' duplicating data. 'Technology can really impact what's happening in prison, but most importantly in probation. You speak to some probation staff and they spend a lot of time finding housing for people, and when it fails, finding housing again,' he said. Timpson took up his role at the Ministry of Justice last July last year, when the penal system in England and Wales was close to breaking point, and oversaw the early release of thousands of inmates to ease overcrowding and free up space. A sentencing review conducted by the former justice secretary David Gauke is expected to recommend next week that more prisoners should be tagged and serve their sentences outside prison. However, the security company Serco, contracted by the government to manage tagging since October 2023, has been severely criticised after a Channel 4 Dispatches documentary last month found that criminals were going untagged for months after their release. Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Timpson indicated he would not be withdrawing the contract. 'What I've learned from doing this job is the procurement processes is well ingrained and long term, and it is pretty much what it is. I think it's our job to keep pressure on, to call it out when it's not right but to work with them to solve the problems that there are. Things have improved a lot, but I'm still not happy,' he said. The Prison Service remained under pressure, he said, with fewer than 1,000 spare places and more than 88,000 people in custody in England and Wales. Timpson said he was confident further emergency measures to combat prison overcrowding would not be needed this year. He also said the government would have to spend £500m on dilapidated cells this year as it attempts to keep them in working order so they could receive offenders. 'One of the problems is, when you go around, certainly the older Victorian prisons, there's always this ongoing problem about losing cells because of various bits of dilapidation, and it costs a lot of money. That means we're spending £500m at the moment on dilapidations and a lot of that is just keeping capacity there,' he said.
Yahoo
11-04-2025
- Yahoo
Mother jailed over Southport post has bid to see daughter rejected
A mother jailed over last summer's riots has been refused temporary leave to spend time with her daughter and sick husband. Lucy Connolly, who was jailed for 31 months for inciting racial hatred in a tweet, has been told by prison bosses she will not be released on temporary licence (Rotl) despite being described by one prison expert as an 'ideal candidate' for such home leave. Documents seen by The Telegraph have previously suggested the 42-year-old childminder from Northampton faced being refused Rotl amid concerns over public and media interest in her case rather than any apparent failure to meet the criteria for temporary release. In her plea for Rotl, Connolly cited a deterioration in her 12-year-old daughter's school behaviour which is 'totally out of character' and the stress being placed on her sick husband, Ray, a Tory councillor, who is suffering from bone marrow failure. A HM Prison Service spokesman declined to comment on individual cases but said: 'To be eligible for temporary release, prisoners must be compliant with all prison rules.' The prison service refused to say why Connolly had been rejected for Rotl but noted there are rules that dictate any contact with the media needs to be signed off by the prison governor. Adam King, Connolly's barrister, who is leading her legal attempt to appeal against her sentence, said: 'We don't have the full details but this strikes me as very unfair and needs to be challenged.' Connolly's husband said: 'I am very disappointed that my wife Lucy has yet again been denied Rotl. I'm disappointed this is what our country is becoming. Our 12-year-old daughter is struggling and she needs her mummy at home. 'This decision is not based on evidence in my opinion. Lucy is a good and kind person who has been a model prisoner. She has helped other inmates on the path to reform. 'Lucy has been entitled to Rotl since November but they have turned down every request. It's not nice to think they've got it in for Lucy but when she sees other prisoners who have done far worse crimes – like killing a child by dangerous driving – getting out, you think they're still making an example of her. 'Lucy was really calm when they told her she didn't get Rotl this time and would only be able to apply again in 12 weeks. Lucy has asked to be transferred back to Peterborough prison which is much nearer us. I hope they grant that so I can take our daughter to see her mummy once a week.' Rotl is not a straightforward legal right but is considered a privilege. Prisoners can appeal against a decision through the jail's internal complaints procedure and ultimately to the prisons and probation ombudsman. It cannot, however, be typically challenged in court but inmates can sue for alleged abuse of prison powers. Connolly was arrested after posting on X hours after the Southport killings. She spoke of mass deportations and setting fire to asylum hotels 'for all I care'. 'I feel physically sick knowing what these [Southport] families will now have to endure. If that makes me racist so be it,' she added. She took it down within four hours after thinking better of what she had written in the heat of the moment but not before it had been viewed 310,000 times and screenshot. She was interviewed by police on August 6 and charged three days later. She has been in jail since, having pleaded guilty and then been sentenced in October. Connolly has been eligible for Rotl since last November based on her prison time served. Rotl is open to inmates as a way to 'rebuild family ties' and allows for up to two overnight home stays a month. The only offenders who are excluded under prison rules include category A prisoners, many serving time for violent, terrorist and sexual crimes; those formally listed as escape risks; and suspects facing extradition. Asked to assess the process by The Telegraph last week, former prison governor Ian Acheson, who has advised the Government on extremism in jails, said: 'It can't be right that someone who is otherwise eligible is not being considered because of either the prison's failure to properly risk assess or her 'notoriety'. It would be perfectly possible for prison authorities to set conditions that precludes any media exposure. 'In my opinion and given the offence details and the background to her custodial behaviour I have seen, she ought to be an ideal candidate for early release to allow her reintegration to start. Many more risky individuals are walking free as a result of Labour's emergency mass release legislation.' Rotl is decided by the governor of HMP Drake Hall in Staffordshire where Connolly was transferred at the start of the year. Last week, a Ministry of Justice spokesman said: 'These are discretionary schemes, and each case is rigorously scrutinised, considering the severity of the offence, the prisoner's conduct and the potential impact on victims and the community.' It is believed Connolly has qualified for an enhanced regime, a reward for good behaviour. Probation documents suggest her application for Rotl at her previous prison HMP Peterborough was delayed until a risk assessment was done. One internal note said: 'It is not necessarily going to happen due to the public interest.' Another said: 'The media interest has been raised as an issue in terms of any future ROTL applications.' She is also not automatically eligible for home detention curfew (HDC), where prisoners can be released as little as a fifth of the way through their sentences by being placed on electronic GPS tags with restrictions on the times they can leave their home. Offenders convicted of racially aggravated offences are excluded from HDC unless they can show there are exceptional circumstances to override the ban. Connolly is also seeking to appeal against her sentence, with a hearing due on May 15. Mr King, her barrister, is expected to argue the judge miscategorised her offence with a sentence wrongly based on intending to incite serious violence. This meant she received a longer sentence than she should have done. If it had been 'correctly' categorised under sentencing council guidelines, she could have been jailed for less than two years, which would have made her eligible for a suspended prison sentence. Mr King will also argue the judge failed to give sufficient weight to mitigating factors. These included an unblemished record, positive good character references, messages that she also sent saying violence was not the answer, that she deleted the post in 3.5 hours, and her emotional sensitivity to children's deaths after the loss of her 19-month-old son 10 years earlier in a major hospital blunder. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
11-04-2025
- Telegraph
Mother jailed over Southport post has bid to see daughter rejected
A mother jailed over last summer's riots has been refused temporary leave to spend time with her daughter and sick husband. Lucy Connolly, who was jailed for 31 months for inciting racial hatred in a tweet, has been told by prison bosses she will not be released on temporary licence (Rotl) despite being described by one prison expert as an 'ideal candidate' for such home leave. Documents seen by The Telegraph have previously suggested the 42-year-old childminder from Northampton faced being refused Rotl amid concerns over public and media interest in her case rather than any apparent failure to meet the criteria for temporary release. In her plea for Rotl, Connolly cited a deterioration in her 12-year-old daughter's school behaviour which is 'totally out of character' and the stress being placed on her sick husband, Ray, a Tory councillor, who is suffering from bone marrow failure. A HM Prison Service spokesman declined to comment on individual cases but said: 'To be eligible for temporary release, prisoners must be compliant with all prison rules.' The prison service refused to say why Connolly had been rejected for Rotl but noted there are rules that dictate any contact with the media needs to be signed off by the prison governor. Adam King, Connolly's barrister, who is leading her legal attempt to appeal against her sentence, said: 'We don't have the full details but this strikes me as very unfair and needs to be challenged.' Connolly's husband said: 'I am very disappointed that my wife Lucy has yet again been denied Rotl. I'm disappointed this is what our country is becoming. Our 12-year-old daughter is struggling and she needs her mummy at home. 'This decision is not based on evidence in my opinion. Lucy is a good and kind person who has been a model prisoner. She has helped other inmates on the path to reform. 'Lucy has been entitled to Rotl since November but they have turned down every request. It's not nice to think they've got it in for Lucy but when she sees other prisoners who have done far worse crimes – like killing a child by dangerous driving – getting out, you think they're still making an example of her. 'Lucy was really calm when they told her she didn't get Rotl this time and would only be able to apply again in 12 weeks. Lucy has asked to be transferred back to Peterborough prison which is much nearer us. I hope they grant that so I can take our daughter to see her mummy once a week.' Rotl is not a straightforward legal right but is considered a privilege. Prisoners can appeal against a decision through the jail's internal complaints procedure and ultimately to the prisons and probation ombudsman. It cannot, however, be typically challenged in court but inmates can sue for alleged abuse of prison powers. Connolly was arrested after posting on X hours after the Southport killings. She spoke of mass deportations and setting fire to asylum hotels 'for all I care'. 'I feel physically sick knowing what these [Southport] families will now have to endure. If that makes me racist so be it,' she added. She took it down within four hours after thinking better of what she had written in the heat of the moment but not before it had been viewed 310,000 times and screenshot. She was interviewed by police on August 6 and charged three days later. She has been in jail since, having pleaded guilty and then been sentenced in October. Connolly has been eligible for Rotl since last November based on her prison time served. Rotl is open to inmates as a way to 'rebuild family ties' and allows for up to two overnight home stays a month. The only offenders who are excluded under prison rules include category A prisoners, many serving time for violent, terrorist and sexual crimes; those formally listed as escape risks; and suspects facing extradition. Asked to assess the process by The Telegraph last week, former prison governor Ian Acheson, who has advised the Government on extremism in jails, said: 'It can't be right that someone who is otherwise eligible is not being considered because of either the prison's failure to properly risk assess or her 'notoriety'. It would be perfectly possible for prison authorities to set conditions that precludes any media exposure. 'In my opinion and given the offence details and the background to her custodial behaviour I have seen, she ought to be an ideal candidate for early release to allow her reintegration to start. Many more risky individuals are walking free as a result of Labour's emergency mass release legislation.' Rotl is decided by the governor of HMP Drake Hall in Staffordshire where Connolly was transferred at the start of the year. Last week, a Ministry of Justice spokesman said: 'These are discretionary schemes, and each case is rigorously scrutinised, considering the severity of the offence, the prisoner's conduct and the potential impact on victims and the community.' It is believed Connolly has qualified for an enhanced regime, a reward for good behaviour. Probation documents suggest her application for Rotl at her previous prison HMP Peterborough was delayed until a risk assessment was done. One internal note said: 'It is not necessarily going to happen due to the public interest.' Another said: 'The media interest has been raised as an issue in terms of any future ROTL applications.' She is also not automatically eligible for home detention curfew (HDC), where prisoners can be released as little as a fifth of the way through their sentences by being placed on electronic GPS tags with restrictions on the times they can leave their home. Offenders convicted of racially aggravated offences are excluded from HDC unless they can show there are exceptional circumstances to override the ban. Connolly is also seeking to appeal against her sentence, with a hearing due on May 15. Mr King, her barrister, is expected to argue the judge miscategorised her offence with a sentence wrongly based on intending to incite serious violence. This meant she received a longer sentence than she should have done. If it had been 'correctly' categorised under sentencing council guidelines, she could have been jailed for less than two years, which would have made her eligible for a suspended prison sentence. Mr King will also argue the judge failed to give sufficient weight to mitigating factors. These included an unblemished record, positive good character references, messages that she also sent saying violence was not the answer, that she deleted the post in 3.5 hours, and her emotional sensitivity to children's deaths after the loss of her 19-month-old son 10 years earlier in a major hospital blunder.
