Inside troubled Wandsworth prison where guard accused of having sex with inmate

Just two months ago, inspectors warned that HMP Wandsworth prison was “falling into disrepair, overcrowded and infested with vermin” – with inexperienced staff struggling to manage more than 1,500 prisoners.

Charlie Taylor, the Chief Inspector of Prisons, has issued an urgent notice to the medium security Category B men’s prison, calling for intervention to reverse systemic and cultural failings that have led to a “shocking decline”.

Linda De Sousa Abreu appeared in court on Monday on charges of misconduct in public office after footage surfaced online allegedly showing a prison officer having sex with an inmate in a south-west London prison cell.

A 30-year-old prison guard from Fulham has been charged following an investigation by the Metropolitan Police into an alleged video that was posted on social media.

It is the latest in a string of scandals at the troubled prison, which saw terror suspect Daniel Khalife allegedly escape from custody in 2023, sparking a nationwide manhunt.

A 22-year-old former Royal Signals member is accused of strapping himself to the bottom of a food delivery van in an attempt to escape. He was arrested four days later in Chiswick after an anti-terrorism officer dragged him off his bike.

Khalife will appear at the Old Bailey in October after pleading not guilty to charges relating to his alleged absconding, as well as breaches of the Terrorism Act, the Criminal Law and the Official Secrets Act.

Despite the alleged incident last year, Taylor said in a letter to the Justice Secretary on May 8 that there were still “significant shortcomings” in security measures at Wandsworth.

“There was chaos in the wings, and staff in most units were unable to confirm where all the prisoners were during the working day,” he warned.

“There was no credible census that could assure leaders that all prisoners had been interrogated.”

His urgent letter of notification came after Mr Taylor called for the closure of Wandsworth Prison, built in 1851, and other crumbling, overcrowded Victorian prisons Independent last year.

In his latest letter, he said that despite 10 self-inflicted deaths since the prison was last inspected in September 2021 and a sharply rising rate of self-harm, around 40% of emergency calls were not answered within five minutes.

Almost seven in 10 prisoners told inspectors they did not feel safe, and more than half said it was easy to get illicit drugs in prison, where the smell of cannabis was “ubiquitous”.

The most recent confirmed random drug test results from February 2024 showed that 44% of inmates tested positive.

The letter said the prison was severely overcrowded, with most prisoners confined for more than 22 hours a day.

“Living conditions were very poor, the cells were cramped and ill-equipped, and the prison was still too dirty,” the urgent notification letter continued. “The structure of the buildings and facilities, including showers and heating, still required significant investment to be of a decent standard.”

Mr Taylor also warned that a lack of experience “at every level of operational staff” was hindering much-needed improvements at the prison.

“Staff were not deliberately derelict in their duties, they simply did not understand their role and lacked guidance, training and ongoing support from their superiors,” he said, adding that there was a degree of despondency among prisoners that he had never encountered before as an inspector.

He wrote: “For this troubled prison to begin its recovery, Wandsworth needs permanent, experienced leadership at all levels who invest in the long-term future of the prison to improve safety and security and lead less experienced colleagues.”

The Government had 28 days to respond to Mr Taylor’s urgent warning, but the publication of the response was delayed due to the run-up to the election.