Daniel Khalife, a suspected terrorist, who escaped from HMP Wandsworth Prison on Wednesday morning (September 6), reportedly strapped to the underside of a lorry, has been spotted in West London today.
Police have this morning (September 9) confirmed that officers from the Met Police are now focusing their search efforts in Chiswick in West London, after ‘intelligence-led activity and some confirmed sightings in that area overnight, including calls from members of the public’.
Since Khalife went missing, there has been a nationwide manhunt as the police hunt for the 21-year-old, who was being held in Wandsworth Prison until his trial for terrorism offences in November.
Police have also released a new description of Khalife, and he is now believed to be wearing a black baseball cap, black t-shirt and dark-coloured bottoms, and carrying a small bag or case.
Officers are scouring the area today looking for the missing prisoner.
A spokesperson for the Met said: “We urge members of the public in that area to remain vigilant and call 999 immediately should they see Khalife, or if they have any information that could assist the search. Whilst we advise members of the public not to approach Khalife if they see him, we still assess that he does not pose a threat to the wider public.”
Khalife, who was wearing chef’s clothes at the time, is believed to have strapped himself under a food lorry to escape HMP Wandsworth when he absconded from the prison earlier this week
Since then there have been no confirmed sightings of the fugitive, and airports and ports have been under tighter regulations than normal as emergency services urgently search for the missing prisoner.
One man was mistaken for Khalife at Banbury train station, where he was briefly put in handcuffs while police confirmed he wasn’t the missing ex-soldier.
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Khalife spotted in West London
According to the Met Police, Daniel Khalife has been spotted in West London today.
Officers from the force say they are focusing search efforts in Chiswick after ‘intelligence-led activity’ and calls from members of the public.
Police say he is believed to be wearing a black baseball cap, black t-shirt and dark-coloured bottoms, and carrying a small bag or case.
Delivery driver claims HMP Wandworth guards never checked underneath his van
A delivery driver who made several trips to HMP Wandsworth has claimed that no-one ever checked underneath his vehicle.Speaking to the BBC, he said security procedures involved a “pat-down” and a search inside his van. In response, the Times reported that the prison service insisted there was no evidence to suggest vans had not been checked on the day Mr Khalife escaped. A spokesperson for the prison service said: “We expect all vehicles coming in and out of prisons to be searched and we have no evidence to suggest this was not happening when these vans entered HMP Wandsworth.
“However, this is an allegation we take incredibly seriously so we have asked this company to provide us with information to help reassure ourselves that the proper security checks were in place.”
Chef uniform Daniel Khalife wearing revealed
The chef’s uniform Daniel Khalife would have been wearing when he escaped has been revealed.
Pictures released by the Metropolitan Police show a white te-shirt, red white striped trousers, and brown working boots.In recent days the police have said they confirmed that Mr Khalife was spotted at Wandsworth Roundabout. Commander Dominic Murphy, who leads the Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Command said: “The sighting near Wandsworth Roundabout could be very significant, and this is one of many useful lines of enquiry that officers are perusing.
“We continue to urge the public to contact us straight away if they think they have seen Khalife or have information on his whereabouts.
“We will continue to work closely with all our colleagues in police services across the country and other partners to trace Khalife and bring him back into custody.”
Former director general of Prisons Service criticises messin the prison system
A former director general of the Prisons Service has criticised the mess in the system that they believe could have played a role in Daniel Khalife’s escape.Speaking to BBC Radio 4, Phil Wheatley said: “It has highlighted that the prison system is in a degree of chaos at the moment.“It is very difficult to make anything work well when you are just managing day by day to fumble your way through with too many prisoners and not enough staff. “So, I would be surprised in the long run if that wasn’t one of the factors that led to things not working right.“The system is just about at maximum capacity, it’s overflowing out into police cells, that’s driven by longer sentences.“The Government has been very keen on longer sentences for criminals but they haven’t supplied the places with enough staff to supervise them, nor have they managed to maintain existing prisons.“They’ve spent what capital they’ve got on trying to build new places, meanwhile some of the older accommodation has had to be taken out of use because it can’t be maintained – so it’s all a bit of a mess, it doesn’t look like a well-planned, thought-through policy that has been resourced.”
Good Morning
Good morning from London. I’m Christopher Sharp. I’ll be bringing you the latest updates on Daniel Khalife. Email: [email protected] Twitter/X: @ChristopherPBS
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