Violent Offenders Remain at Large After Escaping UK Open Prisons
Concerns rise as kidnappers and drug dealers abscond from low-security facilities and evade capture for months.
Multiple violent offenders, including a kidnapper serving a 21-year sentence, remain at large months after escaping from Britain's open prisons, raising public safety concerns. Ola Abimbola, 36, absconded from HMP Ford in Sussex on October 10 of last year and is still wanted by police. He was serving time for kidnap, grievous bodily harm, and a weapons offense, having been jailed in December 2018.
Another inmate, Oliver Mazirel, 38, escaped from the same open prison, HMP Ford, on June 30 by scaling a fence. Mazirel was part of a drugs gang involved in distributing cocaine and cannabis. Separately, Darnell Smith, a drug dealer serving a six-year sentence for possession with intent to supply crack cocaine and heroin, fled HMP Spring Hill in Buckinghamshire on January 28 and is also still being sought by authorities.
Ministers have faced criticism regarding the transfer of potentially unsuitable offenders to open prisons, which feature minimal security and permit inmates to leave for work or education. A total of 78 prisoners absconded from open conditions in the year to March, a 37 percent increase from the previous 12 months. The Prison Governors' Association has warned that changes intended to alleviate overcrowding in higher-security prisons may be placing the public at greater risk, as a larger number of prisoners now deemed unsuitable for open conditions are being housed there.
Sussex Police confirmed that Abimbola "remains outstanding and we are continuing to search for him," urging the public not to approach him and to report any sightings immediately. The force has also arrested two men in connection with Mazirel's escape, on suspicion of aiding his flight. Thames Valley Police are also seeking information on Smith's whereabouts.
In response, a Ministry of Justice spokesman stated that the government inherited a justice system in crisis and has taken decisive action, including building new prison places. The ministry noted that Abimbola was not transferred under the Temporary Presumptive Recategorisation Scheme, which was introduced to ease overcrowding by allowing inmates closer to their release dates to be moved to open conditions. This scheme has been expanded over time, increasing the period prisoners can be moved to open conditions from less than a year to up to three years.
The Ministry of Justice also highlighted that 650 inmates were released under a new early release scheme launched on October 1, which is expected to free up to 50,000 prisoners annually. Those released include individuals serving sentences of up to two and a half years for various crimes, including violent offenses.