A prisoner deemed "extremely dangerous" exploited a security loophole to make a series of explicit threats of kidnap, rape, and murder against female Members of Parliament from inside a maximum-security prison. Neil Preece-Smith, 41, made more than 30 calls in two days from HMP Wakefield, a Category A facility known as 'Monster Mansion'.
Among the targeted lawmakers were Labour MP Nadia Whittome, former Conservative MP Lucy Frazer, and Liberal Democrat MP Christine Jardine. A female parliamentary switchboard operator also received repeated threats of sexual violence, abduction, and murder.
In one instance, Preece-Smith left a voicemail for Lucy Frazer, then the culture secretary, stating: "You cannot get away from me. I’m going to do to you what happened to Jill Dando." He also claimed to have people monitoring her from within the Houses of Parliament. Jill Dando, a BBC Crimewatch presenter, was shot and killed on her doorstep in 1999.
Staff working for Nadia Whittome expressed concern for her safety after Preece-Smith claimed to have information about a plot to attack her, even naming a supposed assailant. Christine Jardine received a voicemail in which Preece-Smith threatened to rape her, claimed to know her address, and alleged he had met her twice and kept a photograph of her on his wall. An aide described the message as "alarming" and "disturbing."
Preece-Smith also targeted Monique Cormode, a parliamentary switchboard operator, with threats of sexual abuse, kidnap, and murder after she was asked to connect him to MPs, including Sir Keir Starmer. These calls occurred in November 2024.
Prisoners at HMP Wakefield are permitted to use authorized landlines to contact approved family and friends, as well as for confidential conversations with their constituency MP. However, Preece-Smith was able to enter a PIN and dial the House of Commons switchboard directly before being connected to politicians' offices.
Sentencing and Criminal History
At Leeds Crown Court, Preece-Smith was handed an additional seven-year sentence and barred from contacting MPs, with the exception of communication with his constituency MP via a solicitor. The judge, Richard Mansell KC, stated that the offences were "particularly grave" given the targeting of female MPs and the context of the murders of Jo Cox in 2016 and Sir David Amess in 2022. "Threats of this nature to serving MPs must be met with significant sentences of imprisonment to deter others," he added.
Preece-Smith, who has 54 convictions across 22 court appearances, has a history of violence and serious offending. He has previously been handed a life sentence for arson in 2006 and received a ten-year sentence for aiding and abetting the suicide of his cellmate in 2007. He also admitted planning to attack child killer Roy Whiting with sharpened toothbrushes in 2016. His prior offences have included misusing prison telephones, making bomb hoax calls, and threats against prison officers.
He has been refused parole six times and is currently held under strict close-supervision conditions at HMP Full Sutton.