On Saturday, an awful assault took place at HMP Frankland. According to a statement from the Prison Officers’ Association (the union for frontline jail staff), Hashem Abedi, brother of the Manchester Arena bomber, allegedly committed an unprovoked attack on three prison officers. It seems he ‘threw hot cooking oil’ over them, and then used ‘home made weapons’ to stab them. According to the union, the officers ‘received life threatening injuries, including burns, scalds and stab wounds’. All three officers were rushed to hospital. As of 6 p.m. yesterday evening the Ministry of Justice confirmed that one officer, a woman, has been discharged, and two are still being treated.
The Lord Chancellor tweeted that she is ‘appalled by the attack of three brave officers at HMP Frankland today… I will be pushing for the strongest possible punishment’, while her Tory shadow, Robert Jenrick insisted ‘this must be a turning point’.
This attack should not have happened.
Get Britain's best politics newsletters
Register to get The Spectator's insight and opinion straight to your inbox. You can then read two free articles each week.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Comments
Join the debate for just £1 a month
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for £3.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just £1 a monthAlready a subscriber? Log in