Overview
- Metropolitan Police arrested Brahim Kaddour-Cherif in Finsbury Park after a member of the public reported a sighting, with the force saying the search used significant resources.
- Kaddour-Cherif was mistakenly freed from HMP Wandsworth on October 29, but police said they were not told until November 4, which extended the manhunt.
- Justice Secretary David Lammy announced tougher release checks, an independent investigation into systemic failures, and rapid deployment of technology to replace paper-based processes.
- Official data show 262 prisoners were released in error in the year to March 2025, including 90 violent or sexual offenders, and the PA news agency understands four mistakenly released prisoners remain at large.
- Another Wandsworth releasee, Billy Smith, returned to custody after handing himself in, while Sussex Police say violent offender Ola Abimbola absconded from open prison HMP Ford on October 16 and remains missing.