Police for two men who were wrongly released from a London jail

Police are searching for two prisoners who were mistakenly released separately from a London jail last week.

Brahim Kaddour-Cherif, an Algerian man facing deportation from the UK, and convicted fraudster William Smith were released on 29 October and 3 November.

It comes just weeks after migrant sex offender Hasush Kebatu, who arrived in the UK on a small boat, was also wrongly released from HMP Chelmsford in Essex.

This leaves Secretary David Lammy, after he promised to put extra checks to prevent similar cases to release similar cases after the release of Kebatu.

During Prime Minister’s questions, Lammy, who was standing in for Sir Keir Starmer, was often asked if any asylum offenders had inadvertently released Kebatu.

As PMQs ended, the police released a statement revealing a foreign prisoner had been released by mistake last Wednesday, with the force announced on Tuesday.

Police have confirmed the man as Kaddour-Chinif and they believe he has links to Tower Hamlets and Westminster in London.

The BBC was told that he was not an asylum seeker and that Lammy had been informed in the evening about the accidental release.

Kaddour-Cherif is understood to have entered the UK on a lawful VISA visit in 2019 but overstayed her visa with a “Possible to continue” case.

Court records show that on 23 June he appeared at Croydon Magistrates Court, accused of handling stolen bank cards in August last year. He denies the allegation – and the case is set for a future trial.

They are Shadow Defense Secretary James Cartlidge, who is weakening for the conservative Kemi Badenoch, is often asked the same question without answering the Conservative Government in Office.

Later, a Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “To enter the house [of Commons]the facts are still emerging about the case and the Deputy Prime Minister is still unaware of key details including the offender’s immigration status.

“The DPM is waiting until after the PMQS and more facts emerge before making a statement.”

After the police announced the wrongful release of Kaddour-Cherif, Lammy released a statement in which he said he was “absolutely angry and scared”.

“The victims deserve better and the public deserves answers.

“That’s why I have brought the strongest checks that always remove such failures and ordered an independent investigation, led by accidental releases that continue to be released for a long time.”

Conservative shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: “It is shocking that the Labor government has wrongly allowed a foreign criminal to be released from prison.”

“It makes a mockery of Lammy’s claims at PMQ that ‘powerful checks’ were introduced on the release.”

The Liberal Democrats’ justice spokeswoman Jess Brown-Pernler called for “a full explanation of how this happened again”.

Reform UK said it was “deeply concerned that the deputy Prime Minister was inadvertently misled” in the house of commons.

Andrew Slaugh, Labor MP and chair of justice in the House of Commons, said the prison system “faces decaying land prisons characterized by chaos and disorder”.

Hours after the police announcement, Surrey police said another man – William Smith – was also released in error from Salaworth last week.

In a Facebook Post, Surrey Police said Smith was sentenced to 45 months for “multiple fraud offenses” on Monday but was released later in the day.

The BBC understands that Smith was wrongly recorded as receiving a suspended sentence rather than a custodial one. “

The error was corrected by the court but the change was sent to the wrong person.

Smith is described as white, bald and clean-scaven, the police said, adding that he was wearing a nike brand’s in a nike tracks ‘the in nikes that’ chew ‘in white on the left pocket, and black trainers. “

Police are urging the public to get in touch if they have information.

Some 262 prisoners in England and Wales were wrongly released in the year to March 2025, according to the latest figures, up from 115 last year.

Staff at HMP Wandsworth told the BBC the prison was in a state of panic after the accidental release.

Security has been a major concern in prisons for some time. An inspection report last year found chaos in the wings, with staff in most units unable to confirm the whereabouts of all their prisoners during the work day.

In 2023 Daniel Khalife escaped from HMP Wand Wandsworth While awaiting trial for spying for Iran.