Latest news with #PrisonService
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Driver for human trafficking gang linked to Essex lorry deaths released from prison
A LORRY driver for a people smuggling gang linked to the deaths of 39 Vietnamese people who were found dead in a trailer in south Essex has been released from prison. Christopher Kennedy, 29, was at the heart of a human trafficking operation which for years illegally brought Vietnamese people into the UK. He was jailed at the Old Bailey for seven years in 2021 for being part of the wider people smuggling operation. Then 24, from County Armagh in Northern Ireland, was sentenced for conspiracy to facilitate unlawful immigration and a confiscation hearing later heard he had benefited from his crime to the value of £67,050.65p. Mugshot - Christopher Kennedy (Image: Essex Police) Kennedy was a key member and had picked up containers with people inside in Essex, delivering them to a remote location in Orsett, but not the ones which tragically held the 39 victims, aged between 15 and 44, who suffocated in Purfleet in October 2019. His trial was told he was "in the loop" after the tragedy unfolded and received several phone calls from haulier boss Ronan Hughes, the ringleader of the people-smuggling gang, soon after the bodies were discovered in one of Hughes' trailers by driver Maurice Robinson, then aged 26. The jury heard within 46 seconds of Hughes' phone call with Robinson ending, during which he was informed of the discovery, Hughes rang Kennedy, who was transporting a load of wine to the UK. Caught - Kennedy on CCTV during one of the trips (Image: Essex Police) Twice Kennedy had picked up containers of Vietnamese national in the two weeks before the tragedy on October 23, 2019, which is why he was tried with the other drivers involved but not charged with manslaughter. He had denied his charge of conspiracy to assist in unlawful immigration but was found guilty following the Old Bailey trial in 2021. Now, the Prison Service has confirmed Kennedy was released at the start of this year after serving half his sentence, in line with sentencing guidelines. A spokesman told MailOnline: "Offenders released on licence are subject to strict conditions and we do not hesitate to send them back to prison if they break the rules." Robinson was sentenced to 13 years in prison after admitting manslaughter and being part of a lucrative, people-smuggling operation while Hughes is serving a 20-year sentence for manslaughter.
Daily Mail
6 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Lorry driver for ruthless human traffickers linked to deaths of 39 Vietnamese migrants is freed from prison after serving half his seven-year sentence
A lorry driver for the gang responsible for the deaths of 39 Vietnamese men, women and children in a failed people smuggling operation has been released from prison after serving just three and a half years. Christopher Kennedy was at the heart of the complex and lucrative human smuggling operation which for years illegally brought Vietnamese people into the UK from the Continent. Kennedy, 29, picked up containers with people inside, but not the one in which 39 Vietnamese, aged between 15 and 44, suffocated in at Purfleet, Essex in October 2019. However, the trial of the ring leaders of the people-smuggling gang heard that Kennedy, from Keady in County Armagh, was a key member and 'in the loop' after the tragedy unfolded. The Old Bailey was told Kennedy received several phone calls from haulier boss Ronan Hughes soon after the bodies were discovered in one of his trailer's by driver Maurice Robinson. The jury heard that while Robinson was informing Hughes of the discovery, Kennedy was trying to get hold of him too. Within 46 seconds of the phone call ending, Hughes rang Kennedy, who was transporting a load of wine to the UK. Seven minutes later, Hughes called Kennedy again. The court was told the calls were made between burner phones belonging to the pair. Kennedy said the calls were regarding a 'problem' with his booking to transport the wine by boat from Zeebrugge and that he should go by train. Prosecutor Bill Emlyn Jones said: 'I suggest to you, Mr Kennedy, you are making this up and Mr Hughes, dealing with 39 dead unlawful migrants, is not at the time calmly carrying on with you about your load of wine and whether you are on the boat or on the train. 'You have had to dream up an excuse for this call.' Kennedy insisted he was telling the truth. Later on Kennedy texted a friend that the trailer in which the bodies were found belonged to Hughes. He told the friend there 'must have been too many and run out of air'. His trial in December 2020 heard he picked up containers in Essex which arrived from Belgium. His job was to deliver them to a remote location at Orsett, a 20 minute drive from the port. Twice he did this in the two weeks before the smuggling operation which went wrong on October 23 2019, which is why he was tried with the other drivers involved. Kennedy was not charged with manslaughter but was instead charged with conspiracy to assist in unlawful immigration. He denied the charge and claimed he thought he was transporting cigarettes, but a jury found him guilty and he was sentenced to seven-years in jail. The Prison Service confirmed to MailOnline that Kennedy was released in January 2025 after serving half his sentence, in line with sentencing guidelines. A spokesperson said: 'Offenders released on licence are subject to strict conditions and we do not hesitate to send them back to prison if they break the rules.' Kennedy was sentenced alongside other key members of the gang. Four were found guilty of manslaughter of the 39 migrants, who died 'excruciatingly painful' deaths, according to the judge. Ronan Hughes, 41, and Gheorghe Nica, 43, played 'leading roles' in the smuggling conspiracy and were jailed for 20 and 27 years respectively. Two other lorry drivers were also jailed for manslaughter. Eamonn Harrison, 24, who towed the trailer to the Belgian port of Zeebrugge before their journey to the UK, was sentenced to 18 years. Maurice Robinson, 26, was given 13 years and four months, having collected the trailer and opened it in an industrial estate to find the migrants dead. Two of Kennedy's fellow truck drivers were sentenced for conspiracy to facilitate unlawful immigration. Valentin Calota, 38, of Birmingham, for four-and-a-half years; and Alexandru-Ovidiu Hanga, 28, of Hobart Road, Tilbury, Essex, was given a three-year sentence. They are understood to have been released. Sentencing, Mr Justice Sweeney said:'I have no doubt that the conspiracy was a sophisticated, long-running and profitable one to smuggle mainly Vietnamese people across the channel.' He said on the fatal trip the temperature had been rising along with the carbon dioxide levels throughout, hitting 40C (104F) while the container was at sea on 22 October 2019. 'There were desperate attempts to contact the outside world by phone and to break through the roof of the container,' the judge said. 'All were to no avail and, before the ship reached Purfleet, [the victims] all died in what must have been an excruciatingly painful death.' In March 2022, the Old Bailey heard Kennedy had made £67,050.65 from people smuggling but had just £6,094.18 in his Bank of Ireland account. Judge Mark Lucraft QC ordered that the available money should be confiscated and used as compensation to the families of the victims.
BBC News
4 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
'Significant increase' in inmates sees rise in cell sharing in NI prisons
Northern Ireland prisons have a "high density" of inmates, with cell sharing at Maghaberry jail on the increase in order to deal with space 40% (567) of prisoners at Maghaberry share cells, a practice referred to as comes as a new report for the Council of Europe (CoE), the human rights watchdog, notes a "significant increase" of prisoners in Northern is primarily driven by remanding people into custody before conviction or sentencing. Ulster Unionist MLA Doug Beattie said members of the Prison Service have contacted him recently to raise a number of claimed there are "rising tensions" at Maghaberry, partly due to "low staff levels".The Prison Service said newly trained officers have been deployed to the jail, with a further class of recruits set to join them in two weeks' Ireland's prisoner population currently stands at 2,139, which is up by more than 200 on a year largest prison, Maghaberry, has 1,470 inmates, 737 (50%) of whom are being held on remand. Last year, Maghaberry had to re-open a disused cell block to increase its CoE report describes Northern Ireland as having a "high prison density".But it did not define the situation as overcrowding - this is when there are more than 100 inmates per 100 on data for 2023-24, it said Northern Ireland had 86 prisoners per 100 places.A spokesperson for the Prison Service said: "Whilst challenging, the prison population in Northern Ireland has not yet exceeded available capacity, and we continue to prioritise safe, decent, and secure custody."The Prison Service is working with partners across the justice system to identify actions that can be taken to reduce the current population, with a particular focus on remand."Every day prison staff perform their challenging roles with dedication and professionalism."
BBC News
4 days ago
- Health
- BBC News
Prisoner's care at HMP The Verne not at expected level
The way a prisoner was cared for in the last weeks of his life was "not equivalent" to what he could have expected in the community, an investigation has Stephens was 83 when he died at HMP The Verne in Portland, Dorset, in May 2021 from bilateral was jailed for 12 years for sex offences in January 2018 and was initially sent to HMP Winchester, where he had a number of seizures and falls. He was moved to The Verne in June 2019.A Prison Service spokesperson said "significant improvements" have since been made at prison since Stephens' death. The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) found Stephens contracted Covid-19 in February 2021 and was admitted to hospital. On his return to prison, he received supplementary oxygen for 15 hours a being admitted to hospital again in April 2021, a consultant told prison staff Stephens was "severely frail" and was in "the last few months of his life". He was discharged in May and died in prison 23 days PPO found that staff "should have pursued a move to a more suitable location" than his prison dormitory before his health "deteriorated to such an extent that he was too ill and frail to be moved".It also found that communication between prison and health staff was "at times poor" and that his needs would have been better met in a prison with 24-hour healthcare. A Prison Service spokesperson said: "We have made significant improvements at HMP The Verne since Mr Stephen's death and have implemented all of the Ombudsman's recommendations."This includes strengthening staff training and improving processes around the treatment of ill prisoners." You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X, or Instagram.
Time of India
4 days ago
- Time of India
Bizarre jailbreak: How French prisoner escaped in released cellmate's laundry bag; went unnoticed for 24 hours
AI-generated representative image A 20-year-old inmate, Elyazid A, nicknamed "the Joker" or "the Equaliser", chose a unique way to escape from a French prison- concealed in fellow inmate's laundry bag, who was being released. The inmate serving several sentences escaped by hiding in the luggage of his inmate who complete his sentence, the Prison Service said in a statement to AFP. He "took advantage of the liberation of his fellow inmate to hide himself in his luggage and get out," the statement said. However, the authorities re-apprehended him later in a village cellar last week, approximately 25km from Lyon-Corbas prison, according to Guardian News. The prison staff failed to notice his absence for 24 hours. Reports indicate he escaped by hiding in a large plastic laundry bag filled with clothes, which his released cellmate transported out on a trolley on Friday. The police continue their search for the accomplice cellmate. Multiple investigations have been launched by Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin, Lyon prosecutors, the French prison service and Lyon-Corbas facility to examine the escape circumstances. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 15 most beautiful women in the world Undo The national prison service head, Sébastien Cauwel, confirmed that Elyazid A, despite facing charges including criminal association and conspiracy to murder, was not considered a security threat. Cauwel described the escape method as exceptionally uncommon, attributing its success to significant internal failures. The incident raised questions about systemic issues within the facility, primarily stemming from staff-related shortcomings rather than infrastructure problems. The severe overcrowding exacerbates these challenges for prison officers. Lyon-Corbas prison currently houses almost 1,220 inmates despite its 678-person capacity. A May report by the Lyon bar association urged immediate action to address overcrowding and maintain basic human rights. The French prison system accommodates 85,000 inmates in facilities designed for under 63,000 people. Cauwel noted that vacant cells are immediately filled, potentially contributing to oversight failures. According to a 2024 Council of Europe assessment, French prisons rank third in EU overcrowding rates, behind Cyprus and Romania. The country has witnessed numerous dramatic escapes, including about 20 helicopter breakouts since the 1980s, reported The Guardian. The prison service faces a shortage of at least 5,000 officers. Recent incidents include armed attacks on prison facilities, with 21 arrests in April following assaults, including gunfire at Toulon prison's entrance. Drug cartels have targeted prison facilities, damaging officers' housing and burning vehicles, responding to increased government enforcement and stricter regulations for imprisoned crime leaders.
