After weeks of controversy surrounding Britain’s prisons, HMP Wandsworth has once again landed in the spotlight — this time for the embarrassing revelation that two inmates were mistakenly released in the same week.
The incidents have sparked outrage, political finger-pointing, and a nationwide debate about how such serious lapses could keep happening in one of the UK’s most scrutinised prisons.
First Mistake: A Convicted Sex Offender Set Free
The first error involved 24-year-old Algerian migrant Brahim Kaddour-Cherif, who was accidentally freed on October 29.
He had been serving time for trespass with intent to steal but was also on the sex offenders register for a previous conviction of indecent exposure.
Despite his record, he managed to walk out of the prison unnoticed — and the blunder wasn’t reported to the Metropolitan Police until nearly a week later, on November 4.
The delay has left many questioning why authorities took so long to inform police that a registered sex offender was on the loose.
When the Met finally launched an urgent manhunt, they admitted Kaddour-Cherif had a six-day head start.
A History of Deception and Immigration Violations
Kaddour-Cherif originally entered the UK legally in 2019 but overstayed his visa the following year.
According to Home Office records, he has been in the country illegally since February 2020.
Despite this, he repeatedly slipped through the cracks — using a fake address in Tower Hamlets to deceive police and court officers.
Residents at the address, including one Algerian tenant who has lived there for over a decade, confirmed that the fugitive never lived there.
Police, they said, have been visiting their flat for two years, often late at night, looking for a man they’ve never met.
“We keep telling them he doesn’t live here,” one resident said.
“It’s embarrassing that they keep knocking on our door.”
Second Slip-Up: Another Prisoner Released by Mistake
Just as news of Kaddour-Cherif’s escape was breaking, another man — William “Billy” Smith — was also discovered to have been wrongly released.
Smith, 35, had just been sentenced at Croydon Crown Court to almost four years in prison for multiple fraud offences.
But due to a clerical error, his record showed a suspended sentence instead of immediate custody.
By the time the mistake was spotted, Smith had already walked free.
Although the fault originated in court rather than at the prison, the release has further damaged Wandsworth’s reputation, which is still reeling from previous scandals.
Political Fallout: Lammy Faces a Storm in Parliament
Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Secretary David Lammy faced intense scrutiny in the Commons as the twin blunders came to light.
Opposition MPs accused him of failing to be transparent after he refused to confirm whether other asylum-seeking offenders had also been mistakenly freed.
Conservative MP James Cartlidge pressed Lammy multiple times during Deputy Prime Minister’s Questions, demanding to know if the Government was hiding more incidents.
Lammy declined to answer directly, instead blaming the previous Conservative administration for what he called a “broken justice system we inherited.”
Later, Lammy released a statement saying he was “absolutely outraged and appalled” by the mistaken release and confirmed that Dame Lynne Owens would lead an independent investigation to uncover systemic failures.
Local Residents Voice Fear and Frustration
People living near Wandsworth Prison say they’re losing confidence in the facility’s security.
Retired nurse Judy Evans, who lives close by, said the situation had become “a habit.”
She added, “I lock my doors all the time now. You just never know who’s being let out.”
Other locals spoke of helicopters circling overhead and drones flying over the prison, sometimes dropping packages believed to contain contraband.
One couple recalled a drone getting stuck in a tree in their garden, describing the prison as “a pretty bad place.”
The chaos has revived memories of Daniel Khalife’s daring escape in September 2023, when the ex-soldier fled the same prison by strapping himself under a food delivery truck.
A Pattern of Failures at Wandsworth
Wandsworth has a long record of internal scandals.
Earlier this year, a prison officer, Linda De Sousa Abreu, was jailed for 15 months after being caught having sex with an inmate.
A government inspection last year described the prison as plagued by poor leadership, overcrowding, high violence levels, and rampant drug use.
Now, the accidental release of two inmates in one week — one of them a convicted sex offender — has reignited calls for a complete overhaul of the UK’s prison management system.
Public Outcry and Calls for Accountability
Labour MP Rosena Allin-Khan, who represents Tooting, demanded immediate answers from both the Home Secretary and the Justice Secretary.
“Residents have a right to feel safe,” she said. “This situation raises serious questions about staffing and operational procedures inside Wandsworth Prison.”
The Liberal Democrats also joined in, with spokesperson Jess Brown-Fuller saying the situation would be “laughable if it weren’t so dangerous.”
She urged Lammy to return to Parliament to explain why it took nearly a week for police to be notified of Kaddour-Cherif’s release.
Meanwhile, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage described the situation as “a total farce,” and Conservative MP Chris Philp accused Lammy of “hiding the truth” from Parliament.
A Troubling Trend Across the System
According to recent government data, the number of prisoners released by mistake more than doubled in the past year — rising from 115 to 262.
The statistics suggest deep-rooted problems across the UK’s prison network, not just at Wandsworth.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer later called the mistaken release “utterly unacceptable,” insisting that “one wrongful release is one too many.”
Downing Street confirmed that Starmer was only informed of the second case after the Metropolitan Police made their public announcement.
A System Under Siege
With multiple wrongful releases, an under-resourced prison service, and mounting political blame, Britain’s justice system is facing one of its biggest credibility tests in years.
As the search continues for Kaddour-Cherif and Smith, the public is demanding more than apologies — they want assurance that dangerous criminals will no longer be able to walk free because of human error.
The question now is whether the reforms promised by Lammy can repair the public’s faith in a system many believe is already broken.