|
A4e
May 14, 2008 Politics.co.uk
A private company that took charge of education and training in eight Kent
prisons has terminated its contract a year early in the face of a hefty
financial loss. The company, A4e, described on its website as a "market leader
in global public service reform" won the three-year contract to run Offenders'
Learning and Skills Services (OLASS) in Kent, starting from 2006. The company
was to work in partnership with the eight prisons to develop tailored education
and training for offenders. But it has now made a shock announcement that it
will be unable to run the service for the third year of its contract (August
2008 to July 2009) because it stands to make a loss of £892,000. The company has
asked the Learning and Skills Council, which oversees the OLASS programme, for a
financial lifeline but is awaiting a response. A4e has contracts to run offender
learning and training at 24 other prisons in the South West, North West and East
of England. Sally Hunt, UCU General Secretary, said: "Running high-quality
prison education and training with professional staff does not come cheap as A4e
has found out. "This sends a strong message to government: bringing in private
providers is not the solution to providing good quality public services. "Our
members are delighted to see the back of this company although the future for
their own employment is not clear. UCU will do its utmost to protect jobs and
terms and conditions for staff."
Altcourse Prison
Group 4 (formerly run by
Global Solutions)
November 9, 2010 BBC
A dentist who tricked the NHS out of more than £300,000 by claiming twice for
working in a private jail has been jailed for two and a half years. John Hudson,
58, admitted two counts of dishonestly retaining wrongful credit from the NHS,
and was sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court on Tuesday. Hudson was paid by HMP
Altcourse but also claimed £307,000 over two years. Patients from his practice
at Whitworth near Rochdale, wrote letters of support for him to the court.
'Blatant dishonesty' -- Judge Graham Morrow QC said Hudson had been a pillar of
the community in Whitworth, but was guilty of "calculated, blatant and
persistent dishonesty" in taking money which should have gone for patient care.
The court heard that dental services at the privately-run jail near Liverpool
were also privately run. But Hudson exploited a weakness in the NHS system. When
the NHS changed the way it ran prison dental contracts in 2006 Hudson should
have ticked a box which stated he was already being paid privately at Altcourse.
Box ticking -- The prosecution said that when he did not tick the box he was
fully aware of what he was doing - effectively getting paid twice for the same
work. The dentist approached Liverpool Primary Care Trust about a contract at
the jail demanding £247,000 a year but accepting half that figure. Despite
lengthy negotiations Hudson never revealed his private payments. The court heard
he spent some of the money on holidays and education fees for his three
children, but he is also more than £40,000 in debt and the NHS is suing him for
£500,000.
October 5, 2010 Liverpool Echo
A PRISON dentist defrauded the NHS of more than £300,000 – and could now face
jail himself. John Hudson treated inmates at HMP Altcourse, in Fazakerley, for
more than two years. But the 58-year-old, who was paid £130,000 a year by the
private jail, wrongfully billed the NHS for the work. Between May 2006 and July
2008, £306,961 flowed into his NatWest bank account. At Liverpool crown court
yesterday, Hudson pleaded guilty to 27 counts of dishonestly retaining wrongful
credit. Judge Graham Morrow QC granted the dentist unconditional bail, but
warned him he could receive a custodial sentence when he returned to court on
November 9. It was also alleged Hudson cheated East Lancashire primary care
trust out of £32,000 at his private practice in his home town of Whitworth,
Rochdale. Hudson denied those two offences and five further charges of
dishonestly retaining wrongful credit of £65,385 from the NHS over four months
between August and December 2008. Kevin Slack, prosecuting, told the court he
did not think it would be in the public interest to pursue those charges.
December 17, 2009 Liverpool Daily Post
A LIVERPOOL prison is among five in the country allowing its inmates to
watch satellite television. More than 4,000 prisoners enjoy the privilege in
private jails nationwide. Altcourse Prison, in Fazakerley, is among the
contractor-run prisons allowing access to a “limited number” of satellite
channels. The number of prisoners allowed to watch satellite varies according to
behaviour. But Justice minister and city MP Maria Eagle revealed the number was
currently around 4,070. The Garston MP was responding to a written question from
Tory MP Philip Davies. She said no inmates in public sector jails have access to
satellite in their quarters. But they do at Altcourse and other GS4-run prisons
in South Wales and Warwickshire. The other private prisons offering satellite
television are run by Serco in Staffordshire and Nottingham. Ms Eagle said: “In
these establishments, satellite television in cells is generally only available
to prisoners on the enhanced or standard level of the incentives and earned
privileges scheme.” There are 84,500 prisoners in England and Wales, meaning
around one in 20 has access to satellite TV.
November 5, 2009 Liverpool Echo
PRISONERS in a Liverpool jail are commanding their organised crime empires
using mobile phones. A damning report into HMP Altcourse slams the authorities
for not investing in jamming technology that would make mobiles obsolete.
Independent inspectors say prison officers at the jail have to conduct laborious
yard searches and intelligence gathering exercises in vain attempts to crack
down on the phones. The Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) – a national body
which inspects prisons for the Government – says buying a signal deviator is an
“urgent requirement”. Its report adds: “This Board is tired of being fobbed off
with excuses from the prison service and ministers alike concerning the progress
as to installation of mobile phone deviators.” An IMB spokesman also said: “The
current situation is having profound implications, particularly in terms of
allowing prisoners the opportunity to organise both the availability of drugs
within the prison and to control criminal activity outside the prison.” The
situation is becoming more critical as inmates are better connected than ever as
handsets get more high-tech. Altcourse inmates could use web-enabled smartphones
to transfer money, the IMB warns. The category B jail, which has a maximum
capacity of more than 1,320, is run by private outfit G4S. Some of the prison
officers there are represented by the Prison Officers Association (POA). POA
spokesman Glynn Travis told the ECHO: “I believe deviators should be used. There
would be no need for mobile phones within the establishment at all. “It would
stop the drug trafficking, the bullying and the violence that goes with the
mobile phones.” He said they are also used to taunt victims and their families.
Mr Travis said mobiles are hot property inside and are worth up to £200 and can
be rented out for £150. But they are contraband and if a rented mobile is
confiscated owners often dish out harsh punishments and fines – on top of those
handed out by the prison authorities. Mr Travis added: “It’s a real problem. On
average there’s one mobile for every 10 prisoners. “If every cell was fitted
with a phone, would prisoners use it? No – because they want to use them for
illicit activity.” The IMB report also expressed concerns about the transfer of
inmates to Altcourse from the West Midlands. There has been an influx from HMP
Hewell, in Redditch, to ease overcrowding. Around half have been near the end of
their sentence, which the IMB says shows little regard for their “human care”.
Altcourse also houses around 120 foreign criminals. But some of them are being
kept there well over the end of their sentence as immigration papers are
processed. The IMB say they deserve a more “humanitarian service”. A Prison
Service spokesman said: “We thank the IMB at HMP Altcourse for their report
which is being fully considered by ministers. We will be responding in due
course.” A spokeswoman for G4S added: “It’s up to the Ministry of Justice
whether they give deviators to prisons. We just do the best we can to try to
stop mobile phones coming in with searches and the like.”
April 28, 2008 BBC
A man accused of raping an 18-year-old woman has died after apparently
hanging himself in his cell. Mathew Le Cras, 21, of Newborough on Anglesey, was
taken to hospital on Thursday from Liverpool's Altcourse jail where he was being
held on remand. Doctors are thought to have switched off his life-support
machine. He had been charged with the rape of the woman near Gaerwen and had
been due at Mold Crown Court for a preliminary hearing on Friday. A spokesman
for GSL, which runs the private jail, confirmed Mr Le Cras had died. He had been
held at Altcourse prison for a week He is thought to have been found by a prison
officer.
April 27, 2008 Daily Post
A 21-YEAR-OLD man accused of raping an 18-year-old
woman on Anglesey has died. Matthew James Lecras, of Church Street, Newborough,
was rushed to hospital early on Thursday, hours before he was due in court. A
spokeswoman for Global Solutions Ltd, the private company which runs Altcourse
Prison, Liverpool, where he was being held, said that Lecras had been found in
his cell by a member of staff during a routine check. Lecras was being held on
remand accused of raping a woman at Gaerwen on April 14. The hearing at Mold
Crown court continued in his absence on Friday after the judge heard he was
seriously ill in hospital.
April 26, 2008 Daily Post
A 21-YEAR-OLD man accused of raping an 18-year-old woman on Anglesey was in a
critical condition last night in hospital. Matthew James Lecras, of Church
Street, Newborough, was rushed to hospital early on Thursday, hours before he
was due in court. A spokeswoman for Global Solutions Ltd, the private company
which runs Altcourse Prison, Liverpool, where he was being held, said that
Lecras had been found in his cell by a member of staff during a routine check.
It is unclear why he had to be taken to hospital. The spokeswoman said: “He is
in a life threatening condition in hospital and an investigation into the
circumstances is underway.”
March 26, 2006 Wales on Sunday
A WOMAN whose husband threatened to kill her then committed suicide in jail, is
fighting his corner for the sake of their young daughter. Vowing to sue the
private prison where her mentally ill ex hanged himself in the days following
their divorce, Karen Crabtree wants justice for their four-year-old girl "who
has lost her daddy". The Llandudno mum-of-one was devastated last summer when
Altcourse Prison in Liverpool told her Lee was dead. The troubled 32-year-old -
who believed Karen was the devil - was found hanging from a bunk bed by a fellow
inmate's shoelaces in July.
March 23, 2006 BBC
An inquest has heard of concerns of a prison officer and a cellmate for the
mental health of a remand prisoner, who was later found hanged in his cell. Lee
Crabtree, 32, from Llandudno, had been placed on suicide watch at Altcourse
Prison, Liverpool, last July. He was seen several times by medical staff during
his time in prison. His cellmate said that he was "depressed to death". The
inquest in Liverpool continues on Thursday. Mr Crabtree was discovered in a cell
on "Beachers Block", the unit which normally holds remand prisoners and young
offenders. The inquest heard how prisoners on suicide watch are supposed to be
placed with cellmates, but Mr Crabtree was alone on the day he died because his
cellmate was in court. In a statement, his cellmate Raymond Smith said Mr
Crabtree was "depressed to death," and "sick in the head". He added: "He had
said the devil was playing games with him and that he was being tested."
September 23, 2005 BBC
Ten prisoners who rioted after they claimed guards tried to lock them up early
on New Year's Eve have been sentenced by a court. The men caused damage costing
£17,500 after barricading themselves inside a wing at Altcourse prison in
Liverpool. They staged a sit-in protest after guards attempted to lock them up
for the night on 31 December 2004. Mr Davies said the prisoners took over the
wing for more than four hours before a team of 50 officers, known as the Tornado
Team, took back control. The prison wing had descended into chaos with inmates
smashing windows, destroying pool tables and lighting fires.
September 2, 2005 BBC
An investigation is under way following the death of a
remand prisoner in a hospital, the Prison Service has said. Robin Spavold, 44,
from Llandudno, North Wales, was held at HMP Altcourse in Liverpool on 18 August
after being charged with criminal damage. He was taken to the prison's health
centre because he was suffering from severe bruising. Mr Spavold was transferred
to the nearby Fazakerley Hospital, and died on Thursday. He suffered a cardiac
arrest.
August 16, 2005 Daily Post
PRIVATELY-RUN Altcourse Prison has been named the most
overcrowded in the country with figures showing that last month it held 50% more
inmates than it was designed to hold. According to Home Office statistics, more
than 933 prisoners were crammed into the Fazakerley jail, which was built to
accommodate 614. The figures show that Altcourse was full beyond even its safe
over-crowding limit of 903. Anything above that limit is considered a serious
risk to "good order and security" Last night Walton MP Peter Kilfoyle,
who has both Altcourse and Walton prisons in his constituency, said: "There
has to be a suspicion that in a private prison such as Altcourse, the more
prisoners they take in, the more money they get.
July 13, 2005 BBC
An inquiry has been launched after two men were found hanged in their cells at a
prison in Liverpool. Lee Jason Crabtree, 32, from Llandudno, Conwy, was found
dead on Monday at HM Prison Altcourse. David Oakes, 25, from Warrington,
Cheshire, was found on Tuesday. The two deaths are not thought to be linked. The
privately-run jail has recently been praised by prison inspectors for its good
environment and work with mentally ill inmates. But the report, by the Chief
Inspector of Prisons Anne Owers, also highlighted bullying among prisoners and
criticised procedures for inmates' first night in jail.
Ashfield Prison
Serco (formerly known as
Premier)
August 10, 2011 Gazette
Police were also called to Ashfield Young Offenders’ Institution in Pucklechurch
following reports of disturbances there. Prison officers dealt with a "small
scale incident of disobedience" involving several inmates according to a
statement from Serco, the company which runs the unit. A spokesman said: "Some
minor damage has been caused, but the situation has been contained and the
centre is secure," a Serco spokesman said. Avon Fire and Rescue Service were
called out at 7.49pm but were stood down as they were not required to attend the
scene.
August 20, 2009 Public Finance
Children detained in prisons and young offenders institutions are exposed to
such ‘dire conditions’ that they are living in ‘modern day dungeons’, according
to a hard-hitting report by the Howard League for Penal Reform. The report,
published on August 17, paints a picture of ‘extraordinary squalor and
institutional brutality’, with children regularly denied access to showers,
toilets and outside exercise areas. Detained children are also often subject to
strip searches by adult staff and many institutions fail properly to undertake
required assessments, plans and reviews. Frances Crook, director of the Howard
League, said: ‘We keep children smelly and dirty, idle and frightened, bored
with education and cooped up in modern-day dungeons. And we expect them
miraculously to pupate into responsible citizens. In reality, these young people
leave prison more damaged and more dangerous than when they first went in. It is
frankly shocking that we treat children in this way in the twenty-first
century.’ At Ashfield prison in Gloucestershire, which is run by Serco, children
were routinely given bags to urinate in instead of being allowed toilets on
their journey to the prison, the report found. At Castington jail in
Northumberland, children were allowed showers only twice a week and seven young
people suffered broken wrists after being handcuffed. A Ministry of Justice
spokesman said: ‘Work is continuing on raising the quality of the services
provided and developing new initiatives that will help further ensure positive
outcomes for all the young people.’
April 13, 2009 This Is Bristol
The privately-run Ashfield Young Offenders Institution has more attacks than
any other prison in the country, according to latest figures. The institution,
near Pucklechurch, recorded more than 600 attacks on inmates in one year – the
highest number of all the UK's 142 jails. Ashfield also had 126 assaults on
prison officers, latest figures released by the National Offender Management
Service show. But Serco, the firm which runs Ashfield, said the figures to July
2008 were high because it recorded every incident, including minor skirmishes,
while other prisons only recorded the most serious attacks.
March 19, 2003
Premier's Ashfield "worst" prison in England and Wales. (News).
Plans to extend the role of private providers in prison services suffered a
setback this month when a PFI jail for young offenders was described as the
worst in the country. An inspection found that conditions at Ashfield,
near Bristol, were so bad that many inmates were frightened to leave their
cells. Under pressure staff relied on inmates to act as
"mini-officers" in the reception wing, and escort van drivers were
used as officers on other wings. Staff delegated responsibility to inmate
orderlies to a worrying extent that went as far as "role reversal".
Martin Narey, the director-general of the Prison Service, described privately
run Ashfield as the worst prison in England and Wales "by some
measure". But he added: "The introduction of the private sector
into the running of prisons has brought immense benefits. My best prison is
probably a private-sector prison." Ashfield is a 44m [pounds
sterling] prison holding up to 400 sentenced young offenders aged between 15 and
21. It is run by Premier Custodial Services, a joint venture company owned 50%
by Serco Ltd and 50% by Wackenhut Corrections (UK) Ltd, under a 25-year PFI
contract. The criticism came only days after the chancellor, Gordon Brown,
said there should be "no principled objection" to further extending
the private sector's role in prison management. The failings in Premier's
operation of Ashfield were exposed in an inspection report by Anne Owers, the
chief inspector of prisons. Describing her report as "depressing" she
found that bullying was rife and that many inmates were "afraid to leave
their cells". A spot-check revealed that nearly half of the inmates
remained in their cells during the day, and less than a quarter were in
education. Owers said a central problem was the poor quality and low morale of
staff because of the inadequate salaries paid by the company. She also
criticised the company for its unwillingness to do anything not in the contract.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme on 5 February, Narey said that Premier
has lost around 2m [pounds sterling] in revenues so far. It is the second
time that Premier has been warned over its performance at Ashfield in recent
years. In December 2001, the company was issued with an improvement notice for
noncompliance with the PFI contract. At the time it had the most reported
incidents of self-harm in the 15-17-year age group of any young offenders
establishment in the UK. Under the terms of Premier's contract--and normal
under PFI deals in the prison sector--the banks that financed the prison's
construction decide whether they choose another private operator or allow the
public sector to take over. Local Northavon MP Steve Webb (Liberal
Democrat) said the private sector had failed to deliver on even the most basic
aspects of the contract. "It is time that the Prison Service took the
management of Ashfield back under its control," he said.
February 5, 2003
The reputation of the private sector as a manager of prisons suffered a blow
yesterday when the government's Youth Justice Board announced it was withdrawing
all sentenced juveniles from the first privately run young offenders'
institution. The board announced its
phased withdrawal of 172 young offenders after the chief inspector of prisons
published a scathing report on conditions at the Ashfield young offenders'
institution near Bristol . Anne
Owers said Premier Prison Services, Ashfield's operator, failed to provide
"the minimum requirements of a safe environment".
Describing her report as "probably the most depressing" she has
issued in the 18 months she has been in post, Ms Owers found that bullying was
not addressed and that many young people were "afraid to leave their
cells". A spot-check during her inspection revealed that nearly half of the
young inmates remained in their cells during the core day, and less than a
quarter were in education. There was
no effective resettlement strategy. Ms
Owers said one of the main underlying problems at Ashfield was the poor quality
and low morale of staff because of inadequate salaries paid by the operator.
Some officers at Ashfield had not undergone an enhanced Criminal Records
Bureau check, which is meant to provide better protection against pedophiles.
The Prison Officers' Association, which has always been opposed to
privatisation, called for Ashfield to be taken immediately into public
ownership. Brian Caton, the union's
general secretary, said Ashfield provided evidence of the "immorality of
running private prisons with the emphasis on making profit rather than running a
good service on behalf of society". Juliet
Lyon, director of the Prison Reform Trust, said the "utterly damning
report" raised questions as to why the Prison Service had allowed such a
situation to develop in the first place. (Social Affairs Correspondent)
BBC
Aramark,
Serco
August 22, 2011 Daily Mail
ALL the old jokes about the BBC canteen are true – and it’s no laughing matter.
For years the grub provided cheeky material for stars including Ronnie Corbett,
Peter Sellers, Terry Wogan and Les Dawson. Sellers quipped on the Goon show in
1954: “Lunch is now being served in the BBC canteen. Doctors are standing by.”
And Wogan regularly refers to his Beeb tea as “the evil brew”. Now, following a
Freedom of Information request, the Mirror can reveal things seems to be as bad
as ever. More than 130 staff have moaned about catering at TV Centre in the last
two years. One claimed to have found animal droppings in a sandwich. He wrote:
“I could have been poisoned.” A colleague said he saw a mouse run across the
serving counter at breakfast. He said: “It fair put me off the scones.” Another
wrote: “Fingers crossed that this time I’d find some meat in the lamb stew. Alas
it was not to be.” Gripes about the canteen and other cafes in the West London
centre included “dust-dry” toast, “undrinkable” coffee and “shameful” service.
And there was an outcry when the Beeb announced it was closing a popular “greasy
spoon” van used by workers at nearby Shepherd’s Bush. Catering firm Aramark,
which serves 4,500 meals a day, said the complaints represented a tiny
percentage. Chief executive Andrew Main insisted: “Most of the feedback we get
is entirely positive.”
May 23, 2010 The Daily Telegraph
Under the scheme, the publicly-funded broadcaster handed over footage to inmates
who earn just £30 a week rather than members of its own 23,000 staff. Convicts
at a privately run Category B jail, the second-highest security level,
transferred tapes of old television shows to computer to save them for
posterity. Senior staff in the BBC’s archives department visited the jail to
watch the work in progress while meetings were held to discuss a landmark deal
for the prisoners to digitise all 1million hours of programmes in its vaults.
Fearful about the controversy the scheme could cause, the BBC never discussed it
publicly and even the broadcasting union, Bectu, was unaware of it. Details were
obtained by this newspaper through a Freedom of Information request that took
more than four months rather than the usual 20 working days. The BBC insists
that it has not given any money to Serco, the private jail operator, for the
secret scheme nor signed any contracts, following the pilot project last year.
However emails disclosed by the corporation show that it had shown considerable
interest in the innovative project proposed by Serco, which runs four prisons in
England. The BBC owns more than 1m hours of historic content, some of it decades
old and at risk of being lost. It employs 66 people to look after it, at a cost
of £5m a year, in its Information and Archives department. The corporation
estimates it would take 10 years to safely copy all 100m items in its collection
into longer-lasting digital formats. In December 2008 it was approached by Serco
to become involved in Artemis – Achieving Rehabilitation Through Establishing a
Media Ingest Service – a new project for prisoners to transfer archive documents
to computers. Serco said it would provide “high-quality employment” and the
chance of an NVQ qualification for inmates and HMP Lowdham Grange, a
628-capacity jail near Nottingham all of whose inmates are serving at least four
years. The firm said this would mean it could provide a “stable work force”. The
BBC was told it would prove a “very cost-effective” way of digitising its
archive, and several meetings were organised to discuss plans. Managers agreed
to hand over 20 hours of old videos, including episodes of Horizon and Earth
Story, so prisoners could transfer them to computer and also add “meta-data” –
typed detailed descriptions of the footage to help producers search through it
more easily. The British Library and National Archives also provided material
for the pilot project. In September last year, five members of BBC staff visited
the jail, where a production workshop had been built, and were reported to be
“pleased” with what they saw of the prisoners’ work and enthusiasm. However
David Crocker, the driving force behind the scheme at Serco, admitted: “The
major concern was around the potential negative newspaper headlines that the BBC
may attract.” The company did discuss the scheme with one newspaper and one
trade magazine but made no reference to the BBC’s involvement. In November, Mr
Crocker told the BBC: “I can’t thank you enough for finding a project for us to
kick-start Artemis.” He said his staff were drawing up “terms of reference” and
would then “cost the project” of a full-scale digitisation of the BBC’s archive.
However no deals have yet been signed. The BBC said: “The BBC did hold
discussions with Serco about their planned project to digitise archives. As part
of this the BBC, alongside other organisations, provided some material for Serco
to use as part of its feasibility study for the project. “No payment was made to
Serco as part of this, nor was any guarantee or promise of work entered into.
“The BBC has no plans to work with Serco to digitise its programme archive and
has not come to any agreements nor signed any contracts with any firms about
utilising the prison workforce on any project.”
Bicester Detention Center
Oxford, UK
Group 4
June 11, 2008 Mail on Sunday
The Home Office squandered £29million of taxpayers' money on a flagship giant
asylum centre which was never built - including hiring in a 'financial advisor'
who charged almost £16,000 a month. A scathing report from MPs exposes a
catalogue of costly blunders and lambasts the failing department for a
'startling absence of common sense' in one of its most embarrassing fiascos of
recent years. Seven years after officials started working on the ambitious plans
to house thousands of asylum seekers on a former RAF station at Bicester,
Oxfordshire, the site remains empty and derelict with 'no benefit' to the
taxpayer. Vast sums were paid to consultants, private advisors and contractors
and when ministers pulled the plug on the entire project in 2005 they were
forced to hand over millions more in cancellation fees. Officials failed to
understand how fierce local opposition and legal challenges would drag out the
process, and made no attempt to plan for future uses of the site or the risk
that other immigration policy changes would scupper the scheme. Last night the
Home Office claimed the disaster had led to an 'overall positive impact for the
public' because officials had learned important lessons. Former Home Secretary
David Blunkett announced the scheme in 2001, as part of a strategy to speed up
and streamline the creaking asylum system by housing applicants in a series of
huge accommodation centres across the country. Thousands were to be placed in
the first centre at an isolated site outside Bicester, but crucially it would
not be secure and the immigrants would be free to come and go as they pleased.
The plans brought a storm of protests, not only from local residents but also
from refugee support groups who claimed leaving so many asylum seekers to
languish at a remote site, far from any local community, was a disastrous plan.
Planning inspectors rejected the plans, but John Prescott used his powers to
overturn their decision, further infuriating locals. Finally ministers realised
in 2005 that the centre was unnecessary and unworkable, but not before almost
£30million of public money had been wasted. The PAC report reveals how the Home
Office hired a Financial advisor at a cost of £15,743 per month, and a
procurement advisor who was paid £15,559 per month, because no civil servants
were judged to have the right expertise. The pair, who have not been named, were
paid more than £1.1million for less than three years work, on top of £6.3million
paid out to consultants. MPs complained that the Home Office was unable to show
whether the highly paid consultants 'added value'. Private contractors Global
Solutions Limited were paid £7.6 for design work, but claimed almost £8million
in termination fees when the Bicester scheme was axed. PAC chairman Edward Leigh
said the project 'embodied lack of foresight, poor business planning and a
startling absence of common sense.' He said the scheme was 'always going to
provoke opposition in the local community' but the Home Office took no account
of that, or of objections from refugee groups, and made no effort to make
contact with local interest groups or MPs to discuss objections. Nor did the
department realise - until it was too late - that a decline in the number of
asylum seekers and some success in speeding up the system meant the centre was
increasingly pointless. Last month the Home Office announced plans to build a
secure immigration detention centre on the Bicester site, although it will not
be open until 2012 at the earliest and will require planning permission. Shadow
Immigration Minister, Damian Green, attacked the Bicester debacle as 'a symptom
of long-term incompetence by immigration ministers, who failed to notice that
asylum numbers were dropping just when they were planning this new centre.
'Their latest plan is to turn the derelict site into a detention centre. I hope
they have done their homework better this time.' A Home Office spokesperson
said: 'At the time, we believed accommodation centres to be the right decision
but as circumstances changed and the project was delayed, we reviewed that
decision. 'Our experience with this project has taught us some important
lessons, and this, along with the other improvements put in place, has led to an
overall positive impact for the public.'
November 8, 2007 The Guardian
A Home Office decision to abandon plans for an asylum accommodation centre near
Oxford because of local opposition cost it £28m, including "termination
payments" of £7.9m to the private contractor, Whitehall's spending watchdog
reveals today. The National Audit Office says that some of the problems faced in
trying to open Bicester accommodation centre could have been foreseen - and
money saved - if the Home Office had worked in a "more coordinated and joined-up
way". The report also discloses that despite a four-year battle by local
residents against the project, it is still being considered whether the site can
be used as a detention centre for failed asylum seekers who face deportation.
The plan to set up a 10-strong network of purpose-built accommodation centres
holding 3,000 asylum seekers was announced by the then home secretary, David
Blunkett, at a time when asylum applications were at a record high, as part of a
plan to disperse them from London and the south-east of England. Bicester was
earmarked as one of the first but it met fierce local opposition and planning
permission was not secured until November 2004. By then, the number of asylum
seekers coming to Britain had halved. The Home Office accounting officer advised
that it was no longer economically viable and the project was cancelled in June
2005. The NAO inquiry found that £33m had been spent in total on the
accommodation centres, including £28m on Bicester alone. The report reveals that
the successful bid by GSL, formerly Group 4, for the contract to build the
750-bed centre for £59.9m was nearly £25m cheaper than the bid from rival
private security company UKDS. After the project was cancelled GSL was handed
"termination payments" of £7.9m. It had already been paid £7.6m for design work.
Edward Leigh, the chairman of the Commons public accounts committee, said that
£28m had been spent on "the asylum centre that never was". Mr Leigh said: "The
Home Office drove ahead with a project to build a network of asylum
accommodation centres without an eye on what was happening to the numbers of
those seeking asylum in the UK.
Birmingham Prison
Birmingham, UK
Group 4
January 23, 2012 BBC
A prison officer has been arrested by police investigating missing keys at the
privatised HMP Birmingham. Inmates were locked in their cells for almost 24
hours after a master set of keys went missing in October. West Midlands Police
confirmed that a man in his 30s was arrested in December and has been released
on bail while investigations continue. G4S, which runs the privatised prison,
said it was aware a member of staff was helping police with their enquiries. The
company said it would not comment further while the matter was subject to an
investigation. HMP Birmingham, in Winson Green, is the first jail in the country
to be transferred to the private sector.
October 21, 2011 BBC
Birmingham Prison inmates were locked in their cells for almost a full day after
a set of keys fitting every cell door went missing. Keys to the jail, which was
taken over earlier this month by private security firm G4S, disappeared on
Tuesday. The firm said all prisons had established contingency plans for
incidents of this nature and there was no risk to public safety. The jail is the
first in the UK to be transferred to the private sector. It is not known if the
keys have since been found or what action is now being taken at the prison.
Bronzefield
Women's Prison
Ashford, West London
Kalyx (Sodexho)
September 22, 2009 The Sun
STAFF at a jail blasted for lax security were sent on a training day to learn
how to lock cells and gates. Bronzefield, Britain's largest private female
prison, was fined an estimated £250,000 in the last two years for more than 100
security breaches. The latest saw blueprints for an extension at the Category A
jail in Ashford, Middlesex, floating in the wind after a bin bag burst. The
crisis got so bad, employees were sent on a training course in the nick - as
some of the 465 cons chanted: "You don't know what you're doing." Internal
documents seen by The Sun revealed blunders, including leaving cells and gates
unlocked and escorting the wrong prisoner to court. Prison director Helga
Swidenbank called the level of security breaches "unacceptably high" in one memo
to staff. In another, deputy director Charlotte Pattison-Rideout told officers:
"Failing to secure gates and doors increases the possibility of staff assaults,
hostage incidents and escapes." Shadow justice secretary Dominic Grieve said:
"It is an utter shambles." Kalyx, which runs Bronzefield, said: "We have strict
procedures and training in place to ensure security measures are followed."
March 6, 2009 Staines News
The 'underhand' expansion of Bronzefield prison in Ashford has angered
neighbours who say they were promised it would never grow any bigger. Cranes are
towering over the women's jail in Woodthorpe Road and prefabricated cells are
being brought in daily as a new block is built to house 77 extra inmates. But
residents who live close to the high-security prison - which has been home to
serial killer Rose West - claim they were told it would never house more than
the 450 prisoners it was built for in 2004. John Hitchins, of Woodthorpe Road,
said: "All we need is another 70-odd Rose Wests across the road. It was bad
enough when they built it in the first place but to be fed this rubbish that
they weren't going to make it any bigger and then see the prefabricated cells
carted past my front door is just a joke. They have been so sneaky and
underhanded." The two-storey block is being built within the existing perimeter
wall, along with a new all weather sports pitch. Permission for the development
was granted in 2007 but residents say they have no recollection of being told
about the proposals. Penny Vincent, who has lived opposite the prison for more
than 15 years, said: "I don't remember hearing anything about it. It wasn't
advertised in the newspapers and I think we should have had some sort of
notification. "I am sure it's growing faster than ever anticipated. It's not an
expansion of their land but it's still far bigger then they ever said it would
be." A spokesman for Kalyx, the private company that runs Bronzefield, said:
"Additional prisoner accommodation is being built at HMP Bronzefield which will
be within the current prison boundaries.
March 2, 2006 The Sun
A LIVE bullet has been found in the jail holding House of Horrors killer Rose
West. It was the second security scare at all-women Bronzefield Prison in
Ashford, West London, which earlier freed a jailbird by mistake. The jail was
locked down for eight hours after the bullet discovery and all 450 prisoners
were confined to their cells. Explosives experts and sniffer dogs helped to
scour the £200million private prison from top to bottom, but nothing more was
found.
February 27, 2006 The Sun
THE private jail holding serial killer Rose West freed a prisoner by
mistake, it was revealed yesterday. The woman, who was facing drugs charges, was
on the loose for four days after the blunder. Livid Home Office chiefs have
ordered a major probe into the first “escape” from state-of-the-art Bronzefield
women’s prison in Ashford, West London. The £200million jail run by UKDS opened
two years ago. West, 52, moved there from Durham jail last year. She is locked
up forever for the Gloucestershire murders of ten girls, including her daughter
Heather, 16. The freed lag was released after being told to gather her
belongings. A source yesterday said: “This is the first time a con has escaped
from Bronzefield and it was all the prison’s fault. “It wasn’t a case of
mistaken identity. It was either rank incompetence or a paperwork error. “It
would be catastrophic if Rose West was released by mistake. “She has changed her
appearance dramatically by shedding three stone and ditching her thick specs for
contact lenses.” The freed 40-year-old lag, being held on remand, was returned
to Bronzefield earlier this month. UKDS last night declined to comment.
Brook House
Sussex, UK
Group 4
July 12, 2010 The Guardian
Conditions at the privately run immigration deportation centre at Gatwick
airport are fundamentally unsafe, according to a damning report by the chief
inspector of prisons published today. Dame Anne Owers says that a year after the
opening of G4S-run Brook House immigration removal centre she and her inspection
team were disturbed to find one of the least safe immigration detention
facilities that had been inspected. Her report says bullying and violence were
serious problems at the time of their inspection in March and – unusually for
immigration detention centres – drugs were also a serious problem. Those who
were about to be deported or had been recalcitrant were placed in two oppressive
holding rooms, which are windowless and seatless. Owers says they should be
decommissioned immediately. Many of the 400 male detainees held at Brook House
are ex-prisoners facing deportation. A number of them told the inspectors their
experience at the removal centre was worse than their time in prison. "Our
surveys, interviews and observations all evidenced a degree of despair amongst
detainees about safety at Brook House which we have rarely encountered. At the
time of the inspection, Brook House was an unsafe place," says Owers's report.
Although the centre – which is built to the same standards as a category B
prison – is designed to hold detainees for no more than 72 hours, the report
says the average time spent in Brook House is three months, with one man having
been there for 10 months. Its design as a short-term holding centre meant there
was insufficient activity or education facilities. A significant number of staff
left after an outbreak of serious disorder in June last year when detainees
started fires and damaged one wing. "While many staff tried hard to maintain
order and control, many felt embattled and some lacked the confidence to manage
bad behaviour," says the report. "A number of staff reported feeling unsupported
by managers, detainees claimed that some staff were bullied by more difficult
detainees." The result was a confrontational approach in the treatment of
detainees with a high use of force, separation often used as punishment, – which
is against detention centre rules – and restrictions on freedom of movement in
an attempt to combat violence. The report says force had been used to restrain
detainees by staff 78 times in the previous six months. The chief inspector said
force was generally used in line with approved techniques. However on one recent
occasion a detainee was moved to temporary confinement after urinating through
his door. The report says: "The officer's own record read: 'I entered first with
the shield. A was standing up by the table and I hit him with the shield.'
Another officer in the team had recorded that (officer N) used the shield to
hold the detainee against the table in the room. Detainee folded his arms behind
the shield." In a later incident in the same the same officer N is recorded
having used his shield to pin a detainee to his bed. The chief inspector also
details the use of the separation unit and cites the case of a detainee who was
taken to a psychiatric institution after more than 80 days in separation for
disturbed and disruptive behaviour. "The challenges of opening a new immigration
removal centre should not be underestimated, particularly with inexperienced
staff and challenging detainees, many of them ex-prisoners," said Owers. "But
none of this can excuse the fundamentally unsafe state of Brook House, which
must be urgently addressed by G4S and United Kingdom border agency."
June 13, 2009 BBC
A fire was started and "disorder" broke out at a wing of an immigration removal
centre near Gatwick Airport, Sussex police said. Officers said there were
reports of minor damage and a blaze in the exercise yard at Brook House, which
houses 312 people awaiting deportation. No-one is believed to be hurt and the
fire is said to have burnt itself out. The force said "disorder" involving 30
detainees started at about 2250 BST and was confined to one wing. Officers were
called in to support security firm G4S. 'No risk' -- G4S, with the help of HM
Prison Service, currently manages the welfare of detainees inside the centre,
the police said. Ch Insp Ed Henriet, of Gatwick Police, said: "Sussex Police is
supporting the security arrangements. All detainees are accounted for and there
is no risk to the wider community." A second fire, that was unrelated to the
first, according to a spokesperson for G4S, was also started by "one of the
detainees setting fire to his bedding" on Saturday afternoon. It was
extinguished using sprinklers and fire extinguishers. The spokesperson added
that a detainee who assisted in putting out the fire was "slightly injured" and
the fire had delayed some detainees being fed. The then Home Secretary Jacqui
Smith opened Brook House, which can house up to 426 people, in March. It is
situated next to Tinsley House, a 136-bed detention centre.
Brixton Prison
Securicor
June 11, 2003
Companies like Securicor and Group 4 were first awarded contracts to carry
prisoners between jails and courts 10 years ago. Since then, several of
their charges have escaped either from courts or from vans en route. (BBC
News)
June
10, 2003
Three prisoners are on the run after escaping from a security van during an
armed hijack in south London. Armed men reportedly disguised as postmen
stopped the Securicor van, shooting the driver in the knee and hitting a guard
with a gun. A Prison Service spokesman said: "The driver was
threatened by a man with a shotgun who proceeded to shoot the driver in the knee
through the door of the van. "The other security staff on board, the
passenger, was pistol-whipped. (BBC News)
Castle
Crown Court
Global Solutions Limited
August 5, 2004
A WORKINGTON man who admitted a series of sex offences against a teenage girl
slashed his forearm moments later in the cells at Carlisle Crown Court, it has
emerged. But just minutes after the judge presiding over the case warned
the 35-year-old that a prison sentence was inevitable, Carruthers used a prison
razor blade to cut his arm. (News and Star)
Campsfield
Immigration Removal Centre
Oxford, England
GEO Group (formerly run by
Group 4, Global Solutions)
October 5, 2011 Oxford Mail
EFFORTS to improve conditions for detainees at Campsfield House immigration
removal centre have stalled, according to inspectors. Chief Inspector of Prisons
Nick Hardwick said not enough had been done to deal with problems – particularly
in healthcare and education – raised by his predecessor Dame Anne Owers after an
inspection of the UK Borders Agency centre in Kidlington two years ago. His
officials made an unannounced three-day inspection in May, shortly before
operation of the centre – which houses about 200 people – passed from Geo Group
to Mitie on May 30. The inspectors praised the way newly-arrived detainees were
supported, said detainees felt safe and there was little bullying or use of
force, noted relationships between staff and detainees were satisfactory, work
placement arrangements had improved and access to phones and email was good. But
they said there were “significant weaknesses in healthcare services”, education
provision had not improved, decisions to place detainees in the separation unit
were not always properly authorised and better interpreting services were
needed, along with more notices in foreign languages.
August 5, 2011 The Guardian
Separate investigations into three deaths in immigration removal centres (IRC)
in the past month have been launched by the police, amid growing concern about
the treatment of detainees. The spate of deaths has caused alarm among critics
of the government's detention policy, who warn that the system is at "breaking
point" with poor healthcare putting people's lives at risk. Two men died from
suspected heart attacks at Colnbrook near Heathrow airport and the third killed
himself at the Campsfield House detention centre in Oxfordshire on Tuesday. John
McDonnell, Labour MP for Hayes and Harlington, who has two detention centres
including Colnbrook in his constituency, said he feared there would be more
deaths as the system struggled to cope with the number of people being detained.
"The government is now detaining people on such a scale that the existing
services are swamped," he said. "It is inevitable if we put the services under
such relentless strain that there will be more deaths as a result … we are
dealing with people who are extremely stressed and extremely vulnerable and the
services are not able to cope and not able to guarantee their safety." The first
man who died was Muhammad Shukat, 47, a Pakistani immigration detainee who
collapsed at around 6am on 2 July. His roommate Abdul Khan says that in the
hours before he died Shukat was groaning in agony, had very bad chest pains and
was sweating profusely. Khan, 19, from Afghanistan, said he began raising the
alarm around 6am and pressed the emergency button in the room 10 times in a
frantic effort to get help. Khan claimed that on three occasions members of the
centre's nursing team entered the room and found Shukat on the floor where he
had collapsed. Khan said they put him back into bed, took his temperature and
some medicine was administered, but did not call emergency assistance
immediately. According to Khan, the nurses initially said that Shukat could go
to see the centre's doctor at 8am. According to the London Ambulance Service,
Colnbrook staff called an ambulance just before 7.20am. Attempts were made to
resuscitate Shukat, but he was pronounced dead on arrival at Hillingdon
Hospital. A postmortem found the provisional cause of death to be coronary heart
disease. Shukat's body has been returned to Pakistan and his family are
understood to have no concerns about the medical treatment he received. The
second man to die at Colnbrook has not yet been named. According to the
Metropolitan police he was 35 and was found dead in his cell at 10.30am last
Sunday. London Ambulance Service officials pronounced him dead at the scene. "A
postmortem held on 1 August found the cause of death to be a ruptured aorta. The
death is being treated as unexplained," said a police spokesman. Colnbrook IRC
is managed by Serco. In a statement to detainees about Shukat's death, deputy
director at Colnbrook, Jenni Halliday, described her "deep regret" and extended
her condolences. In a statement to detainees about the second Colnbrook death,
Serco's contract manager, Michael Guy, informed detainees that a resident in the
short-term holding facility had died and that the death was thought to be from
natural causes. On Tuesday, a 35-year-old man hanged himself in the toilet block
at Campsfield House detention centre in Oxfordshire. A fellow detainee, who
refused to give his name, said the man had been hours away from being deported
and had become very anxious. "He was normally a very quiet person … but the
pressure is too much for people in here." It is understood the man had only been
at the centre for a few days before he died. The Home Office refused to give any
more details saying his extended family had yet to be informed. Emma Ginn, from
the campaign group Medical Justice, said the deaths had heightened concern about
the poor healthcare on offer to those being kept in UK detention centres. "Based
on medical evidence from many hundreds of detainees, Medical Justice has
documented the disturbingly inadequate healthcare provision that often
vulnerable immigration detainees are subjected to in Colnbrook and other
immigration removal centres... [this] combined with the perilous and frightening
conditions of detention, is a lethal cocktail, a disaster waiting to happen."
The UK Border Agency declined to comment on the specific circumstances of each
case. It said the police and the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman always
investigated deaths in immigration detention centres and it would be
inappropriate to comment until these were complete. David Wood, director of
criminality and detention at the UK Border Agency, said all detainees at
immigration removal centres have access to health services seven days a week.
"All detainees are seen by a nurse within two hours of arrival and are given an
opportunity to see a GP within 24 hours," he added. "The health of all detainees
is monitored closely, and the healthcare professionals are required to report
cases where it is considered that a person's health is being affected by
continued detention. "The UK takes its responsibilities seriously, which is why
we consider every case on its individual merits and will continue to offer
protection to those who need it. However, detention is an essential part of our
controls on immigration in the UK." A groundbreaking ruling -- A man with severe
mental illness was unlawfully locked up in a UK detention centre for five months
and subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment, according to a high court
ruling. The man, a 34-year-old Indian national, was detained in Harmondsworth
immigration removal centre between April and September last year. On Friday a
judge ruled that his treatment amounted to a breach of article 3 of the European
convention human rights. The man's lawyer said the ruling – thought to be the
first of its kind – raised wider questions about how the government treats
people with mental illnesses in the immigration and detention system. "The
court's decision that my client suffered inhuman or degrading treatment at a UK
detention facility sends a very loud and clear message to the authorities,"
said. "We would urge the minister to conduct a fundamental review into how
people suffering from mental illness are treated in the immigration detention
estate." The man, referred to as "S" in the ruling, had a history of serious ill
treatment and abuse before arriving in the UK. He served time in prison for
wounding and assault before being transferred to a secure psychiatric hospital
until his discharge in April 2010. Following his release the UK Border Agency
said there was "no evidence" he was mentally ill and he was detained in
Harmondsworth where his health deteriorated and he began to have psychotic
episodes and self harm. The high court intervened and he was released on bail.
His lawyers said he had been living with his family since then and had fully
complied with the conditions of bail set by the court. In the ruling judge David
Elvin said: "S's pre-existing mental condition was both triggered and
exacerbated by detention and that involved both a debasement and humiliation of
S since it showed a serious lack of respect for his human dignity. It created a
state in S's mind of real anguish and fear, through his hallucinations, which
led him to self-harm frequently and to behave in a manner which was
humiliating…" A UK Border Agency spokesperson said: "We regularly review our
detention policies and will look at the findings in this case to ensure lessons
are learned. Detention is an essential part of our immigration control but we
recognise the importance of ensuring it remains appropriate on a case by case
basis."
August 3, 2011 BBC
A man has died whilst being held at the Campsfield House Immigration Removal
Centre in Oxfordshire. The BBC received a call from a fellow detainee claiming
an Asian man had hanged himself in the showers on 2 August. A spokesperson from
the UK Border Agency confirmed a man had died at the privately run centre and
was in the process of contacting his family. The Police and Prisons and
Probation Ombudsman are investigating the death.
August 3, 2010 Daily Mail Reporter
More than 100 men being held at an immigration centre are on hunger strike
today. The detainees last night refused their evening meal at the Campsfield
House immigration removal centre in Kidlington, Oxfordshire. Officials at the UK
Border Agency confirmed they were 'monitoring' the situation. Jonathan Sedgwick,
UKBA deputy chief executive, said: 'We can confirm 108 detainees have refused
prepared meals from staff yesterday evening. 'However they still have access to
food from the on-site shop and vending machines. 'Staff are monitoring the
situation closely and listening to the detainees' concerns. 'All detainees have
access to legal representation and 24-hour medical care.' Earlier this year a
report by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons Anne Owers found that the average
lengths of stay for detainees at Campsfield appeared to be increasing. It also
found that some detainees were effectively being held indefinitely because there
was little prospect of removal, while education provision was poor, particularly
for the significant numbers of long-stay detainees and those with little
English. Campsfield is 'a long-term centre where detainees are accommodated,
pending their case resolutions and subsequent removal from the United Kingdom.'
The site has 216 beds for male detainees and is run by contractor The GEO Group
Ltd.
March 10, 2010 BBC
Some detainees held at Campsfield House immigration centre in Oxfordshire
are being detained for "excessive periods", according to an inspector's report.
Dame Anne Owers, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons (HMCIP), said the centre near
Kidlington was making progress. But the inspector expressed concern that average
lengths of stay appeared to be increasing and a lack of data obscured the scale
of the problem. The UK Borders Agency (UKBA) said it reviewed detention
frequently. Campsfield House, run by GEO Group Ltd, has had an unsettled recent
history, with a number of high-profile incidents and escapes.
May 18, 2009 Oxford Mail
DISTURBANCES at Campsfield House Immigration Removal Centre could be reduced
if detainees were given more to do, an independent body has claimed.
Campsfield’s Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) has just published its 2008
annual report on the controversial Kidlington centre, which has a history of
escape attempts and violent incidents. IMB chairman Lieutenant Colonel Freddie
Cantrell said: “We believe that activities and education should be increased to
fully occupy the detainees. “There is nothing worse than boredom with a detainee
who really doesn’t know what his future is going to be. “This can cause stress,
and stress can lead to trouble and disturbances.” Lt Col Cantrell — one of 10
IMB volunteers who check on treatment of inmates at the centre — said detainees
currently had 30 hours of formal education a week, including lessons in English,
art and computing, which was insufficient.] He recommended the UK Border Agency
review its contract for education provision at the centre, which holds up to 216
detainees. The 61-page report also shed new light on two major incidents which
occured within days of each other in June last year. On June 16, friends of a
Jamaican man who was due to be deported started fires in an education block,
detainees’ rooms and in a fitness suite. The education block was destroyed and a
shop was looted. Three days later, seven detainees escaped through a
ground-floor window. Three of those who went on the run are still at large.
Referring to the escape, Lt Col Cantrell said: “Of course it shouldn’t happen.
“It means there is a weakness in the security. Of course that has been
rectified.” But he added: I don’t think any establishment in the world is
completely secure.” Other findings included a plan to put televisions in each
detainee’s room within months, and the fact that paid work for inmates had
doubled since the 2007 report was published. The report said force was used by
staff 34 times in 2008, up from 31 in 2007, but the occupancy was higher and as
such there was a reduction in the proportion of incidents where force was used.
Handcuffs were used 11 times in 2008, the lowest level at the centre since 2005.
The IMB also recommended ensuring detainees’ property travelled with them when
they were transferred from police custody to the centre, and reviewing the way
racial complaints were investigated. A UK Border Agency spokesman said detainees
had access to a range of activities, and added the agency awaited
recommendations from a review of education provision. No-one at GEO Group UK
Ltd, which runs the centre, was available for comment.
December 3, 2008 Oxford Mail
Failed asylum seekers at Campsfield House Immigration
Removal Centre used the Internet to access “inappropriate content” on the web,
it has emerged. A report by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP)
revealed the centre’s 200 plus detainees were accessing the worldwide web for up
to an hour a day, but “despite controls, arrangements to block access to
inappropriate content were not always effective”. Last night, a spokesman for
HMIP could not detail the nature of the inappropriate content, and chief
inspector of prisons Anne Owers was unavailable for interview. However, Ms Owers
released a statement which read: “Email and Internet access is an important, and
cheap, way for detainees to keep in contact with the outside world and relatives
overseas. It is, however, important to ensure that access is controlled. “The
point of the comment in the report is that there was a system of visual and spot
checks at Campsfield, but the most effective way of ensuring that access is
consistently controlled, which we have observed in other centres, is either to
have a filtering system, or for staff to have a monitoring screen on which they
can see exactly what all detainees are accessing.” Detainees first began surfing
the web in December last year and there were plans to create an Internet cafe,
HMIP revealed. Inspectors compiled the report after an unannounced four-day
inspection of Campsfield House, near Kidlington, in May this year. The centre
had “returned to normal” following a series of “major disturbances” in 2007,
which included two riots and a breakout by 26 detainees, the report said.
However, the inspection took place a month before another outbreak of violence
and the escape of seven more detainees, and those incidents were not mentioned.
Inspectors also found detainees were given pay-as-you go mobile phones on
arrival at the centre, which the Home Office said were returned whenever a
detainee was removed. The report found there was little evidence of bullying.
The report also showed that the average length of detention had more than
tripled, from 14 days in December 2006 to 46 days. Bill McKeith, of the Campaign
to Close Campsfield, said: “The overall flavour of the report is quite critical.
The Government claim it is a removal centre. A removal centre is a place where
people are placed briefly before they are removed — and 46 days is not a brief
stay.” A spokesman for the UK Border Agency would not be drawn on Mr McKeith’s
claims, and did not issue a reaction to the report. Nobody was available for
comment at GEO Group UK Ltd, which runs the centre. The inspectors also
recommended an investigation as to why there had been a 37 per cent turnover of
custody officers in 12 months. The report also gave a detailed breakdown of the
nationalities and ages of the 202 detainees.
August 14, 2008 BBC
Thirteen Iraqi Kurds began fasting on Saturday in protest against
deportation and reports an Iraqi man killed himself after being deported from
the UK. The Home Office said the situation was "under control" and no-one had
collapsed from lack of food. The BBC has learned about 46 people refused their
evening meal on Wednesday. Some of the hunger-strikers are also protesting
against conditions at the centre. Earlier, Algerian detainee and Aston
University student, Redouane Messaoudi, 32, told BBC News he would starve for as
long as it took. He said he came to the UK nearly 10 years ago and is married to
a British woman, and lives with her and two young children in Birmingham. "I am
at university, I've paid so much money, I have been working so hard to manage my
life between the family and studies," he said. Dashty Jamal, general secretary
of the International Federation of Iraqi Refugees, said the detainees were
"victims of war and violence" in Iraq. "They are not a criminal, they are
civilians," he said. "They arrived in this country because they didn't have any
other choice." Campsfield House, which holds some 200 asylum seekers and foreign
prisoners, has been the subject of a campaign to close it. The Campaign to Close
Campsfield group said other detainees joined the strike in protest over
conditions at the centre, where they said they were being "treated like
animals". The GEO Group, which runs the site for the government, declined to
comment.
June 19, 2008 Telegraph
Four detainees are on the run after escaping from a controversial
immigration centre that has been the scene of much unrest. Seven people
initially broke out of the facility although three were recaptured by police
shortly after the alarm was raised at 4 am. The break-out happened just five
days after a fire at the Campsfield immigration detention centre in Oxfordshire.
The blaze was in a communal room at the centre on Saturday afternoon and around
20 detainees staged a rooftop protest. At the time, detainees said tensions
began simmering among Jamaican inmates at the 215-man detention centre when
staff brought dogs into their accommodation. In August last year 26 detainees
escaped from the centre in a mass break-out. A Thames Valley police spokesman
said that officers remained on the scene supporting the Home Office in their
efforts to bring the situation under control. Superintendent Howard Stone said
police were also working with the GEO Group UK Ltd, which controls the privately
run centre on behalf of the Immigration and Nationality Directorate. "We are
working with GEO as well as the UK Border Agency to ensure everything is done to
locate the missing detainees as quickly as possible," he said. "However, I would
ask that if members of the public see anyone acting suspiciously and believes
they may have been involved in this incident to contact the police immediately."
GEO signed a three year contract with the Home Office to run the centre in March
2006 with an option to extend it until 2011. A GEO spokesman said: "Yes, it is
correct there has been another outbreak at the detention centre. We know who the
escaped detainees are and the police are now working to recapture them."
June 14, 2008 Daily Mail
A special prison service riot unit known as the Tornado Team was sent into a
controversial detention centre yesterday to quell a violent stand-off between
staff and illegal immigrants awaiting deportation. The 50 elite officers –
dressed in Robocop-style black boiler suits and helmets and carrying batons and
shields – marched into the Campsfield centre near Kidlington, Oxfordshire, after
an initial disturbance when several fires were started. Crews from 15 fire
engines tackled the blazes which caused thick black smoke to billow from one of
the detention buildings. The Tornado Team was supported by about 50 police
officers – some, equipped with riot gear and dogs, entered the camp while others
secured the perimeter as a police helicopter hovered overhead. All the 200
inmates were herded into the camp’s exercise yard while fire crews took two
hours to put out the blazes and make the area safe. But the detainees, all men,
then refused to return to their buildings – creating another stand-off. At one
point the illegal immigrants could be heard violently hammering on the 25ft high
steel fence that surrounds the yard. A senior prison officer said outside: ‘No
one in there is going anywhere.’ The Home Office said last night: ‘The UK Border
Agency asked police for assistance and officers have secured the perimeter,
which has not been breached. 'Specially trained prison officers known as a
Tornado Team have been sent to the site in riot gear.’ Last August, 26 detainees
escaped from Campsfield after a fire was started. But last night all the men
were believed to have been accounted for. Tornado Team members are picked from
serving prison officers and undergo four months of specialist training. Their
boiler suits are fire-resistant, as are their padded gloves and steel-capped
Army-style boots. Extra protection comes from plastic protectors on their
forearms and shins. Every officer carries an American-style PR-24 sidearms
baton. It can be used for defence, held along the forearm, or to attack by using
a protruding metal attachment which can be spun round in confined spaces such as
cells or corridors to keep assailants at bay. As an additional precaution, squad
members wear face protectors to stop flames spreading under their protective
suit. They use personal radios to contact their head at the scene, who is known
as Silver Commander. He in turn takes orders from a Gold Commander, in charge of
the overall operation and based at the Prison Service headquarters in London.
Campsfield has been dogged with controversy since it was converted from a youth
detention centre to handle illegal immigrants in 1993. Last year alone, there
were two other disturbances not including the breakout. It is run by the UK
subsidiary of American company the GEO Group, which signed a five-year contract
in March, 2006. The Home Office said all the detainees were being escorted back
to their accommodation blocks by 7.30pm. A spokesman added: ‘The situation has
calmed down. There has been no resistance from the detainees to going back to
their rooms. The operation is being wound down at the site.’ A GEO spokesman was
unavailable for comment last night.
June 14, 2008 The Times
Inmate disturbances and fires broke out this afternoon at a troubled
immigrant detention centre that has previously suffered riots, blazes and
escapes. Two plumes of smoke rose from the centre in Kidlington, Oxfordshire.
The problems at Campsfield House detention centre, which holds more than 200
foreign criminals and illegal immigrants, have prompted calls for its closure.
Thames Valley police were called in this afternoon to help the security teams at
the privately-run centre. A police helicopter hovered above the centre, and the
riot squad was put on standby. More than a dozen fire engines have been
attending the fire, and one detainee is said to have been hospitalised with
smoke inhalation. There have been no other injuries reported at this stage.
Campsfield House is managed by the Reading-based GEO Group UK Ltd, on behalf of
the Immigration and Nationality Directorate. It has been beset with problems
since it opened, and detainees rioted twice last year. In March, fires were
started and CCTV cameras smashed, after a detainee was removed for deportation.
Seven staff and two inmates were injured. A fire in August allowed 26 inmates to
escape - eight of them were still at large at last report. All the escapees were
foreign criminals, awaiting deportation. In December, staff were forced to
evacuate a block, again after a detainee was removed. Other inmates wrongly
believed that the man, Davis Osagie from Benin in West Africa, had been murdered
by prison officers. Authorities moved 128 inmates to other detention centres
after December’s riot. David Pitman, who lives down the street from Campsfield,
said he saw smoke coming from the detention centre and heard the inmates
shouting. “This seems to happen more and more often,” he said. “Last time there
was trouble and the police hadn’t arrived on the scene so I had to chase one of
the escapees with a torch. “I have a young daughter and I worry for her safety
with these criminals running around free. Something needs to be done about the
security in there.” The centre’s independent monitoring board criticised GEO for
failing to prevent the rioting, despite being warned after the first clash that
the rioting could happen again. An audit report this year, commissioned by the
Border and Immigration Agency, disclosed racism and tension in some of the
country’s 10 immigration detention centres. It found that officers at several
centres had taunted detainees - describing them as “black bastards” in one case
- and found “turbulent” atmosphere in some units. At Campsfield, it said, there
was a “tense” environment atmosphere where staff were afraid of detainees. One
member of staff said: “If this was white British people in here we would be a
lot stricter, it is because they are black people that we are afraid.”
November 26, 2007 Oxford Mail
Detainees at an immigration detention centre near Oxford have warned the
atmosphere is on a knife-edge as campaigners marked its 14th anniversary. While
protesters rallied outside Campsfield House, detainees spoke of a tense
atmosphere and warned of a new riot. Speaking to the Oxford Mail from inside the
centre in Kidlington, detainee Michael Sinclair said: "People are not getting
any justice in here. They have been talking about a riot. "People have been
plotting. I am frightened because you never know what will happen - it is very
dangerous." Father-of-five Mr Sinclair, whose mother lives in Blackbird Leys,
came to Oxford from Jamaica in 1999. He met his wife, who lives in East Oxford
with three of his children, in 2003 but was unsuccessful in securing a spouse's
visa and returned to Jamaica to re-apply. His visa was refused again, and
desperate to see his wife and children, he returned to Britain on a false
passport but was caught and jailed in March. The 41-year-old has been detained
in Campsfield House since October and is currently facing deportation. Fellow
detainee Rohan Walker, 27, said: "People are not getting any justice." When
asked if he thought another riot was likely, he said: "People have been talking
about that. You never know when it could happen." Around 50 demonstrators from
the Campaign to Close Campsfield staged a two hour protest outside the centre on
Saturday afternoon. The group chanted and listened to speeches. Member Bob
Hughes, 60, said the centre was on the verge of serious unrest. The university
lecturer, from St Clements, Oxford, said: "It is continuously on the boil. As
far as we know the conditions are dreadful." Mr Hughes said the anniversary of
the centre, which opened on November 23, 1993, made the current situation
particularly troubling. Neither The GEO Group UK, which runs the centre, or the
Home Office, were available for comment.
August 7, 2007 The Times
Ministers were warned less than two weeks ago that an immigration centre from
which 14 men are on the run was unsuitable for holding them. They were also told
that the policy of putting foreign prisoners in immigration centres “bursting at
the seams” presented a high risk that could trigger disorder. Fourteen foreign
prisoners are on the run after fleeing from Campsfield House immigration removal
centre during the second outbreak of rioting on the premises in five months. The
convicted prisoners, who were among 26 who escaped from the centre run by GEO
Group UK, had served sentences in jails but were being held in the centre near
Oxford while awaiting deportation. It emerged yesterday that officials from the
Home Office had met detainees at the centre last Wednesday and Friday to discuss
their grievances, including overcrowded and squalid conditions, a high rejection
rate for bail applications and delays in repatriating migrants who wish to go
home. But at 10.30pm on Saturday a fire broke out in a portable building at the
centre where food is prepared. The detainees took advantage of the disorder to
break out of the centre but 12 were recaptured soon afterwards, including a
Bangladeshi who approached the home of a prison officer and asked to be hidden.
Explaining that the search for the missing men has been scaled down, a Thames
Valley Police spokesman said: “We have not got large numbers of officers on the
ground searching for them any more. [But] we are still looking for them and
their identities have been circulated to all forces.” A report into the earlier
disturbance at the centre highlighted the risk that the Home Office was running
by placing prisoners in immigration centres, which have much lower security than
prisons. “The impact of foreign national prisoners is the biggest external issue
affecting Campsfield House. It is putting the centre under great strain,” the
report by Bob Whalley, a former Home Office senior civil servant, said. At the
end of May more than 50 per cent of the 198 detainees in the centre were foreign
prisoners. The inquiry report cautioned: “The fabric is not suitable for foreign
national prisoners. It has none of the strength of a prison, nor does it offer
any flexibility for dealing with difficult incidents or detainees.” Staff had
complained of the large influx of foreign prisoners, “many with serious criminal
backgrounds and ‘streetwise’ in their experience of prison”, the report said. It
added that little was known about many foreign prisoners who arrived at
immigration centres. After serving time in jail many of the prisoners found the
more relaxed regime at Campsfield House disorientating. The report said that
some became manipulative or bullying. It cautioned: “Some will find the dual
pressure of further time in custody and uncertain date of release frustrating,
to the extent that, ‘with nothing to lose’, the temptation to join in gratuitous
disorder may prove too much. A concentration of discontented detainees may prove
so volatile that an otherwise innocuous event may prove a trigger point for
concerted disturbance.” The report said: “There are several groups of foreign
national prisoners presenting high risk in terms of potential for disorder.
There is little to inhibit them if an opportunity to engage in wanton disorder
presents itself. The greater their frustration at the position, the greater the
risk of disorder.” Damian Green, the Tory immigration spokesman, attacked the
Government for putting foreign prisoners who were awaiting deportation into
immigration removal centres. “We need immigration detention centres as part of
the process of removing people who have no right to be here, but what we
shouldn’t be doing is mixing up immigration offenders with other criminals, and
that’s where the big failure lies.” Lin Homer, chief executive of the Border and
Immigration Agency, said: “We have recently looked at the regime in Campsfield
and we are putting in place a number of improvements with the centre operator.”
Troublespot -- 1993 Campsfield centre opens
1997 50 detainees take part in
disturbance
2001 90 go on hunger strike
2002 David Blunkett, then Home
Secretary, announces its closure
2003 Decision reversed after riot at another
detention centre
2004 Local council rejects plans to expand Campsfield to
hold 300
2006 GEO Group wins five-year contract to run Campsfield
March
2007 Disturbance as staff try to remove Algerian for deportation. Sixty
detainees transferred out because of the damage
August 2007 Disturbances and
26 detainees flee. Twelve recaptured and 14 still on the run Source: Times
database
August 3, 2007 BBC
Detainees at an Oxfordshire detention centre are suspending their ongoing hunger
strike while they wait for a response from the Home Office. More than 150
detainees at Campsfield House Immigration Centre near Kidlington in Oxford have
been refusing to eat since Tuesday night. They have complained to officials
about the overcrowded conditions and claimed they are being held illegally. The
Home Office said it would respond to concerns by Friday afternoon. Campsfield
was rife with scabies, but only staff were issued with gloves. Campaign to Close
Campsfield -- In a statement, the Campaign to Close Campsfield also said the
centre "is a health hazard with 70% of people infected with flu". "Paracetamol
is the only medicine made available and two weeks ago even this ran out. "Campsfield
was rife with scabies, but only staff were issued with gloves. "Although
detainees are held as civil detainees, not convicted prisoners or prisoners on
remand, food, toilets and showers are a lot worse than in prisons." It said some
detainees were being held even though they had won appeals against deportation
or had agreed to go back to their countries of origin. Troubled history -- On
Wednesday, the Home Office promised it would respond to the concerns within 48
hours. Formerly a Young Offenders Institute, Campsfield was converted into an
immigration detention centre in 1993 amid a storm of protest from local
residents. Run by the American company GEO, which specialises in operating
detention facilities, Campsfield holds up to 200 male asylum seekers at a time.
Within six months of opening the centre experienced a major problem when six
asylum seekers escaped following a rooftop protest. A number of low-level
disturbances inside the centre and regular public protests outside its gates has
since occurred at Campsfield.
April 3, 2007 The Guardian
A private prison was criticised by its staff and a judge yesterday following
the collapse of a manslaughter trial over the death of a prisoner on suicide
watch. Four officers from Rye Hill prison, near Rugby, run by Global Solutions
Ltd, were cleared of all charges in connection with the death of Michael Bailey,
from Birmingham, who was serving a four year sentence for cocaine dealing. He
was found in March 2005 hanged by his shoelace from the door to his cell in the
segregation block. Daniel Daymond, 23, of Rugby, Paul Smith, 39, of Warrington,
and Samantha Prime, 29, also of Rugby, were acquitted at Northampton crown court
of charges of manslaughter by gross negligence in connection with Bailey's
death. Ben King, 21, of Southbrook, Daventry, along with Mr Daymond, was cleared
of perverting the course of justice by doctoring log books for suicide watches.
All were cleared on the direction of the judge, Mr Justice Grigson. He said: "No
one who has heard the evidence in this court can have any doubt that the death
of Michael Bailey was a tragedy, not least because it was avoidable." Outside
the court Bailey's mother, Caroline, said: "This case clearly shows there were
failures in Rye Hill prison and GSL ... I hope the outcome of this case brings
changes." Paul Smith, manager of the segregation unit where Mr Bailey killed
himself, resigned from GSL before the court case. He said after his acquittal.
"Straight from the start I had expressed concern about the level of support and
training. I told senior management about it and they didn't do anything." In a
statement released through his solicitor, Mr Daymond said: "[Michael Bailey's]
death was a tragedy that was wholly avoidable. I hope that today's decision will
focus attention on the way in which Rye Hill Prison is run." A spokesman for GSL
said: "This whole matter will be looked at very carefully. Self-harm is an issue
that prisons work very hard to avoid." The jail was the subject of criticism by
the chief inspector of prisons, Anne Owers, who found the staff were
inexperienced.
March 16, 2007 Oxford Mail
Staff are counting up the costs at Campsfield House immigration detention
centre after detainees ran riot and started a fire. About 60 detainees were
moved to other detention centres, including Yarl's Wood in Bedfordshire, on
Wednesday night. Anti-Campsfield campaigners claim the revolt at the centre, in
Kidlington, was sparked when an Algerian detainee was removed from his room for
deportation. Police are investigating the fire as suspected arson. A former
member of staff, in his 20s, who asked not to be named, praised former
colleagues who he said tried to tackle the fire at the centre at 6.30am on
Wednesday, before firefighters arrived. He said: "They kicked windows out and
tried to tackle the fire themselves. "I spoke to one of the seven members of
staff who needed hospital treatment and he told me that there has been serious
damage to blue block and yellow block and the library has been destroyed. "Only
about 30 detainees kicked off, but it will cost hundreds of thousands of pounds
to put the damage right. "The ironic thing is that the GEO group that runs the
site has been getting detainees to paint internal areas and blue block has only
just been painted." The former worker claimed that more than 190 detainees were
housed in an area which mean for 130 and that it was not 'fit for purpose'.
Oxford West and Abingdon MP Evan Harris said: "There will need to be an
investigation of why there has been yet another serious disturbance at
Campsfield House, which has been a subject of a number of critical reports by
successive chief inspectors of prisons." Dr Harris, a member of the House of
Commons select committee on human rights, added: "My select committee is already
conducting an inquiry into detention of failed asylum seekers, following
concerns about physical abuse during removals. "The Home Secretary himself a few
years ago declared that Campsfield House was not appropriate for the 21st
century, but then of course the Government decided to keep it open anyway. They
will need to look at that question again."
March 14, 2007 BBC
Seven staff and two inmates have been injured in a fire after a riot broke
out at an immigration removal centre. Emergency services were called to deal
with the incident at Campsfield removal centre near Kidlington, in Oxfordshire,
early on Wednesday. A BBC reporter saw a dozen riot officers carrying shields
enter the centre to join about 35 police officers who were dealing with the
incident. The nine injured people are thought to be suffering from smoke
inhalation. The seven immigration staff at the centre and two detainees have
been taken to hospital. A Home Office spokesman said the riot teams were working
to get the centre completely under control as soon as possible. "The perimeter
of Campsfield has not been breached and all detainees have been accounted for,"
he added. They used force to drag the person from the bed and after that
everything kicked off. Campsfield detainee: In a statement Thames Valley Police
said: "The detainees were evacuated and nine people have been taken to hospital
suffering from smoke inhalation. No serious injuries have been reported. "The
fire has now been extinguished. Five fire engines and 30 firefighters attended
the incident. The fire was relatively small and mainly generated a lot of
smoke." 'Fighting stopped': A detainee, who did not want to be named, told BBC
News 24: "This place is falling apart - computers are getting smashed. "They've
stopped fighting now but they're destroying every bit of equipment they can find
- computers getting smashed, shops are getting broken into, they're stealing
everything." "They used force to drag the person from the bed and after that
everything kicked off," he said. Sarah Cutler from Bail for Immigration
Detainees, which provides workshops at Campsfield offering legal advice to
detainees, said she was not surprised by the disturbance. "There are big
problems at the moment," she said, adding that many people were being held for
months. Riot gear: Those included "people who want to go back to their country
of origin, have told the Home Office they want to go back, but are still
detained because they can't get it together to remove them". A Home Office
spokeswoman said the continuing incident began at 0630 GMT. BBC reporter Rajesh
Mirchandani, speaking outside the centre, said he had seen members of a prison
service fast response team enter the site. "They're riot trained and they went
in carrying riot gear." He said he could see a helicopter hovering overhead and
police dog units and mounted police were now patrolling the perimeter of the
centre. The Home Office spokeswoman said: "Police, fire and ambulance teams are
on the scene and a number of Tornado units from the Prison Service have been
deployed to the centre." Campsfield can hold 196 adult male detainees, but it is
not known how many are currently being held there.
July 22, 2006 The Independent
A Kurdish teenager killed himself after spending more than four months in an
immigration detention centre, an inquest has heard. Ramazan Kumluca, 18, is the
youngest asylum-seeker to have committed suicide while facing deportation from
Britain. Campaign groups yesterday called for the closure of all detention
centres, comparing them to Victorian workhouses. Mr Kumluca is one of more than
30 asylum-seekers who have killed themselves in the past five years after being
told their applications had failed. He had travelled from his home in Turkey to
Italy and then on to Britain where he claimed asylum last year, saying that his
life was in danger over a £20,000 debt owed by his father. He also claimed that
if he was sent back to Italy (under rules that asylum must be claimed in the
first safe country reached) he was at risk of exploitation. Mr Kumluca was
refused asylum and denied bail because there were fears he would not report back
for deportation. He was sent to Campsfield House in Oxfordshire, an immigration
removal centre that holds around 100 men at any time. The average stay for
detainees at the centre is 14 days, but because the teenager was fighting his
deportation order he was held for four and a half months. An inquest at Oxford
Old Assizes heard he had been plunged into despair during his incarceration and
had complained of insomnia, headaches and anxiety. A fellow inmate, Abdulwase
Kamali, told the court Mr Kumluca had appeared "sad" the day before he killed
himself. He said: "Ramazan said he had been told by immigration he would be sent
back to Italy, and he said if he was sent back to Italy he would be used in sex
films. He said he would slash himself or hang himself." On 27 June last year, Mr
Kamali and other Muslim detainees alerted warders after calling Mr Kumluca for
morning prayers and finding his door would not open. He was found hanging from
the door closing mechanism. After investigating his death, a Prison and
Probation ombudsman cleared staff of any wrongdoing. The jury returned a verdict
of suicide. Outside the court, Bob Hughes, of the pressure group Campaign to
Close Campsfield, said: "Here we have an institution full of people being driven
deliberately to despair by government policy." "He added: "We believe these
people should be allowed to get on with their own lives. Centres like Campsfield
are a huge national scandal and shame. Campsfield House has been a removal
centre since 1993 and is privately run by the company Global Solutions Limited.
In 2002, the then Home Secretary David Blunkett pledged that the centre would be
closed, but a year later it was decided to keep it open and expand the number of
places. Since 2000, at least 25 asylum-seekers have killed themselves while
living in the community after being told they would be deported. Mr Kumluca was
the seventh to have committed suicide in a detention centre. More than 2,600
adults and children are being held in detention centres prior to deportation. In
January this year another asylum-seeker Bereket Yohannes, from Eritrea, was
found hanging at Harmondsworth Removal Centre. An inquest will be held into his
death.
June 17, 2006 Indy Media
On Monday 12th of this week a Somalian man went onto a roof at Campsfield;
he had been detained for four months (probably illegally, since the government
cannot deport people to Somalia) and took a rope and a plastic bag with him.
GEO, the new management at Campsfield, asked the police to leave and said they
would deal with the matter themselves; we do not know whether they used violence
against the Somalian detainee; he has been removed from Campsfield, no doubt to
somewhere even worse as is usual in these cases. There have been 12 suicides in
immigration detention, and several hundred attempted suicides and cases of self
harm requiring medical treatment. GSL lost the contract to run Campsfield to GEO
(Global Expertise on Outsourcing), presumably on cost grounds. GEO took over at
the beginning of the month. They have changed their name from Wackenhut, and
have a discreditable history of running penal institutions in the USA and
Australia. GSL's manager, Andy Clark, who had been more willing than his
predecessors to allow volunteers and education classes in Campsfield, decided he
could not work with GEO; at least two of the people who ran education classes
and workshops have been sacked or left, and GEO apparently intends to provide
much reduced hours of education (as required under the contract), run by its own
officers. But of course the most serious problem is not the conditions inside
the centre, but the fact that people are detained there who have committed no
crime, been charged or suspected of no crime, with no judicial process and no
time limit, often with no access to lawyers, and always with great uncertainty
about what is happening to them or about to happen to them.
May 23, 2001
The global private security firm Group 4, is an "Investor in
People." This may come as a surprise. For since Campsfield
opened, almost unnoticed, in the bleary period just before Christmas in 1993,
this improvised brick compound has become to many the unacceptable face of the
British government's asylum system. Within weeks, the country's first
specialized facility for confining them while their cases were decided was
provoking hunger strikes. Within months, detainees were climbing on to its
roofs to protest at the conditions. Still in its first year of operation,
there was a mass escape over its 20ft perimeter fence, and a
"disturbance" - involving fires and smashed furniture - which resulted
in the deployment of riot police and injuries to detainees, who needed several
ambulances and hospital treatment. Official reports on Campsfield in 1995
and 1998 by two different chief inspectors of prisons found fear, boredom and
stress among inmates. Among the Group 4 staff, the inspections found
inexperience, poor pay and exhausting shift work. This cycle of protest
and disorder and repressive countermeasures continued unabated during the late
1990s. (Guardian Newspapers)
May 14, 2002
As many as 15 asylum seeker accomadation centres could be built across the UK
despite an angry response from residents in the locations chosen for the three
pilot "villages". The government plans to build the centres at
Throckmorton, near Pershore on Worcestershire, RAF Newton, in Nottinghamshire,
and at Bicester, Oxfordshire. More than 3,000 villagers have signed a
petition objecting to a development in their area. Some local people are
anxious about plans to house large numbers of asylum seekers near them,
particularly following the riot and fire which destroyed the $100m Yari's Wood
centre. Steve Mitchell, chairman of Pinvin Parish Council, promised to
fight the plans "every step of the way". (BBC News)
Colnbrook
Immigration Removal Center
Colnbrook, UK
Serco
August 5, 2011 The Guardian
Separate investigations into three deaths in immigration removal centres (IRC)
in the past month have been launched by the police, amid growing concern about
the treatment of detainees. The spate of deaths has caused alarm among critics
of the government's detention policy, who warn that the system is at "breaking
point" with poor healthcare putting people's lives at risk. Two men died from
suspected heart attacks at Colnbrook near Heathrow airport and the third killed
himself at the Campsfield House detention centre in Oxfordshire on Tuesday. John
McDonnell, Labour MP for Hayes and Harlington, who has two detention centres
including Colnbrook in his constituency, said he feared there would be more
deaths as the system struggled to cope with the number of people being detained.
"The government is now detaining people on such a scale that the existing
services are swamped," he said. "It is inevitable if we put the services under
such relentless strain that there will be more deaths as a result … we are
dealing with people who are extremely stressed and extremely vulnerable and the
services are not able to cope and not able to guarantee their safety." The first
man who died was Muhammad Shukat, 47, a Pakistani immigration detainee who
collapsed at around 6am on 2 July. His roommate Abdul Khan says that in the
hours before he died Shukat was groaning in agony, had very bad chest pains and
was sweating profusely. Khan, 19, from Afghanistan, said he began raising the
alarm around 6am and pressed the emergency button in the room 10 times in a
frantic effort to get help. Khan claimed that on three occasions members of the
centre's nursing team entered the room and found Shukat on the floor where he
had collapsed. Khan said they put him back into bed, took his temperature and
some medicine was administered, but did not call emergency assistance
immediately. According to Khan, the nurses initially said that Shukat could go
to see the centre's doctor at 8am. According to the London Ambulance Service,
Colnbrook staff called an ambulance just before 7.20am. Attempts were made to
resuscitate Shukat, but he was pronounced dead on arrival at Hillingdon
Hospital. A postmortem found the provisional cause of death to be coronary heart
disease. Shukat's body has been returned to Pakistan and his family are
understood to have no concerns about the medical treatment he received. The
second man to die at Colnbrook has not yet been named. According to the
Metropolitan police he was 35 and was found dead in his cell at 10.30am last
Sunday. London Ambulance Service officials pronounced him dead at the scene. "A
postmortem held on 1 August found the cause of death to be a ruptured aorta. The
death is being treated as unexplained," said a police spokesman. Colnbrook IRC
is managed by Serco. In a statement to detainees about Shukat's death, deputy
director at Colnbrook, Jenni Halliday, described her "deep regret" and extended
her condolences. In a statement to detainees about the second Colnbrook death,
Serco's contract manager, Michael Guy, informed detainees that a resident in the
short-term holding facility had died and that the death was thought to be from
natural causes. On Tuesday, a 35-year-old man hanged himself in the toilet block
at Campsfield House detention centre in Oxfordshire. A fellow detainee, who
refused to give his name, said the man had been hours away from being deported
and had become very anxious. "He was normally a very quiet person … but the
pressure is too much for people in here." It is understood the man had only been
at the centre for a few days before he died. The Home Office refused to give any
more details saying his extended family had yet to be informed. Emma Ginn, from
the campaign group Medical Justice, said the deaths had heightened concern about
the poor healthcare on offer to those being kept in UK detention centres. "Based
on medical evidence from many hundreds of detainees, Medical Justice has
documented the disturbingly inadequate healthcare provision that often
vulnerable immigration detainees are subjected to in Colnbrook and other
immigration removal centres... [this] combined with the perilous and frightening
conditions of detention, is a lethal cocktail, a disaster waiting to happen."
The UK Border Agency declined to comment on the specific circumstances of each
case. It said the police and the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman always
investigated deaths in immigration detention centres and it would be
inappropriate to comment until these were complete. David Wood, director of
criminality and detention at the UK Border Agency, said all detainees at
immigration removal centres have access to health services seven days a week.
"All detainees are seen by a nurse within two hours of arrival and are given an
opportunity to see a GP within 24 hours," he added. "The health of all detainees
is monitored closely, and the healthcare professionals are required to report
cases where it is considered that a person's health is being affected by
continued detention. "The UK takes its responsibilities seriously, which is why
we consider every case on its individual merits and will continue to offer
protection to those who need it. However, detention is an essential part of our
controls on immigration in the UK." A groundbreaking ruling -- A man with severe
mental illness was unlawfully locked up in a UK detention centre for five months
and subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment, according to a high court
ruling. The man, a 34-year-old Indian national, was detained in Harmondsworth
immigration removal centre between April and September last year. On Friday a
judge ruled that his treatment amounted to a breach of article 3 of the European
convention human rights. The man's lawyer said the ruling – thought to be the
first of its kind – raised wider questions about how the government treats
people with mental illnesses in the immigration and detention system. "The
court's decision that my client suffered inhuman or degrading treatment at a UK
detention facility sends a very loud and clear message to the authorities,"
said. "We would urge the minister to conduct a fundamental review into how
people suffering from mental illness are treated in the immigration detention
estate." The man, referred to as "S" in the ruling, had a history of serious ill
treatment and abuse before arriving in the UK. He served time in prison for
wounding and assault before being transferred to a secure psychiatric hospital
until his discharge in April 2010. Following his release the UK Border Agency
said there was "no evidence" he was mentally ill and he was detained in
Harmondsworth where his health deteriorated and he began to have psychotic
episodes and self harm. The high court intervened and he was released on bail.
His lawyers said he had been living with his family since then and had fully
complied with the conditions of bail set by the court. In the ruling judge David
Elvin said: "S's pre-existing mental condition was both triggered and
exacerbated by detention and that involved both a debasement and humiliation of
S since it showed a serious lack of respect for his human dignity. It created a
state in S's mind of real anguish and fear, through his hallucinations, which
led him to self-harm frequently and to behave in a manner which was
humiliating…" A UK Border Agency spokesperson said: "We regularly review our
detention policies and will look at the findings in this case to ensure lessons
are learned. Detention is an essential part of our immigration control but we
recognise the importance of ensuring it remains appropriate on a case by case
basis."
June 22, 2009 Thaindian
The news that foreign criminals, including rapists and terrorists, are being
treated to lavish cuisine as they wait to be deported, has not gone down with
the taxpayers in Britain. There is an outrage among residents over money being
spent on the preparation of mouthwatering dishes for 383 inmates, who are
currently staying at a luxurious 47 million pounds Colnbrook Immigration Removal
Centre in Berkshire. The menu that these detainees are being offered includes
oriental poached fish parcels, beef goulash and mint lamb stew. Each detainee is
offered four choices for lunch and dinner, plus three vegetable options and a
dessert. “The idea that these people should enjoy hotel-style standards of
service and food is preposterous. Given the recession we’re living in, most
people will think this type of arrangement is outrageous,” the Sun quoted
Matthew Elliott, a local resident, as saying. Other delicacies offered to them
include chicken chasseur, fish gumbo and beef and onion pie. They are handed a
menu at the start of the week and asked to mark their choices for the next seven
days - with food cooked to order. “Some of the dishes are so exotic they put
Gordon Ramsay to shame. The grub’s certainly better than the local hotels. Now
every foreign con wants to come here because the food is so good,” an official
said. The scandal is the latest to hit the Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre
in Berkshire, which is run by a private firm ‘Serco’. Earlier it was reported
how the detainees had access to Nintendo Wiis and plasma TVs.
June 2, 2009 The Independent
Allegations that asylum seekers are being bullied by immigration staff are
not being properly investigated, a report into Britain's flagship immigration
removal centre has found. The use of reasonable force to control detainees at
Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre, near Heathrow Airport, had increased and
was not always well managed, Anne Owers, the Chief Inspector of Prisons also
found in a report published today. In the three months before the inspection,
there had been 179 complaints ranging from bullying to poor food. Dame Anne
said: "...we found little improvement at Colnbrook since our last visit... there
was evidence of the centre taking inappropriate steps to manage some of the
challenges; there were examples of separation being misused and the vulnerable
persons unit was not fit for purpose." The centre, run by Serco, holds male
detainees in the most secure facility in the detention estate. Dame Anne said:
"A significant number of complaints, including allegations of staff bullying,
were not adequately investigated and replies lacked detail." Dave Woods, head of
criminality and detention at the UK Border Agency, said: "In the six months
since HMCIP visited, safety, security and purposeful activity for detainees have
improved significantly."
January 16, 2007 IC Coventry
Conditions in holding centres for immigration offenders awaiting deportation
still need to be improved, the jails watchdog has said. Chief Inspector of
Prisons Anne Owers published reports on four immigration short-term holding
facilities at Colnbrook near Heathrow Airport, Sandford House in Solihull, and
Liverpool's Reliance House and John Lennon Airport. Inspectors found that
detainees at Colnbrook spent unacceptably long periods locked in single rooms,
and there was a lack of information and independent advice for people facing
removal. But it had avoided some of the problems seen in other facilities
because it was managed by the Immigration Removal Centre, offering access to
healthcare facilities, welfare and race relations support, Ms Owers said. Staff
at the three centres in Liverpool and Solihull - all run by Group 4 Securicor -
needed more training in the care and protection of children, her report found.
The facilities also required reorganising for a mixed population, it added. Ms
Owers said: "Accommodation still remains inadequate in many centres and the
needs of detainees in relation to healthcare, information and advice, and
preparations for release are not yet sufficiently met." Home Office Minister
Liam Byrne said: "I take very seriously the recommendations, and action plans
responding in detail are currently being drawn up to ensure further improvements
are made. "It is important to remember that non-residential short-term holding
facilities are intended to accommodate people for very brief periods of time."
Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Nick Clegg said: "The inspector's report
confirms what has been apparent for some time: that, for the Government, these
people are out of sight and out of mind. "Any society should be ashamed when
people are treated like this just because they are to be deported."
Docklands Light Railway
London, England
Serco
May 13, 2010 London Evening Standard
Docklands Light Railway operator Serco has been fined £450,000 after it failed
to stop a train which hit and killed a man who had fallen off a platform. Robert
Carter, 34, stumbled on to the lines at All Saints station following a
late-night argument with another passenger, Paul Green. Mr Green telephoned
police to say Mr Carter had a knife and had fallen on to the track. Officers
asked the DLR control room to check if someone was on the lines, but this was
treated as an “informal request” rather than an actual report, Southwark Crown
Court was told. A control room operator failed to see Mr Carter on the track and
did not halt the trains, which are automatic and do not have an actual driver.
Shortly afterwards another member of the control room staff saw a police officer
on All Saints station's CCTV waving his arms above his head. This operator
immediately pressed an emergency plunger to halt an oncoming train but it was
too late. The wheels struck Mr Carter, who suffered serious injuries and died in
hospital. Serco was also ordered to pay £43,773 costs. It was found guilty last
month, under health and safety regulations, of failing to ensure its automatic
trains did not hit people who were on the tracks. Judge Deborah Taylor, passing
sentence yesterday, said: “Serco fell considerably below what was required of
it.” Procedures were “not robust or comprehensive enough” in dealing with
incidents of human error. But the judge said it was clear that Serco “took
safety seriously “ and there was “no suggestion profit was put before safety”.
David Travers, QC, prosecuting for the Office of Rail Regulation, said Mr Carter
was involved in an altercation with another passenger at All Saints. “After he
fell, it would appear that Mr Carter was unable or unwilling to move — whether
through injuries from the fall, intoxication or for some other reason is
unknown,” said Mr Travers. “DLR staff looked at the station on their CCTV
monitors, which are not suitable for seeing if anyone is on the track, and
failed to see Mr Carter. The train which killed Mr Carter could have been
stopped before reaching the station.” Jurors were played a recording of the
British Transport Police call to the DLR control centre, in which line
controller Paul Day was heard to say: “There's certainly no one on the track.”
Stephen Moody, for Serco, said it had made several changes since the incident
and improved safety procedures. It denied one count of failing to comply with
its health and safety duties.
Doncaster
Prison
South Yorkshire, UK
Serco (formerly known as
Premier)
November 3, 2010 The Star
A DISGRACED prison officer who was handed a suicide note by an inmate put it in
his manager's 'in tray' to be dealt with the next morning. By that time Shaun
Flanagan, aged 26, was dead - just three days after being locked-up on a charge
of driving while disqualified. An inquest at Doncaster Coroner's Court was told
prison officer Russell Calladine admitted he was too frightened to enter the
cell where Mr Flanagan hanged himself in June 2006. Instead, he waited until
colleagues at HMP Doncaster arrived a few minutes later before helping to cut
the prisoner's noose. It has taken more than four years for evidence about Mr
Flanagan's last hours to be heard in public, by a jury of four women and three
men. Mr Flanagan, of South Street, Highfields, was supposed to be checked in his
cell every 30 minutes because he was detoxifying from drug addiction. But
questions have been raised about the checks carried out by Mr Calladine, who has
since been sacked.
July 23, 2010 The Star
PRISONER-on-prisoner violence has more than doubled in Doncaster Prison last
year after bosses put all the young offenders together. The figures for assaults
reported at the Marshgate jail soared to 412 in 2009, compared to 192 in 2008.
The figure was more than three time the 2007 figure of 127. The revelation comes
as figures obtained by The Star under the Freedom of Information Act revealed
there were 1,149 attacks on prisoners by other inmates over the last three
years. Lindholme Prison saw the fewest, with 156 over three years, with 47 in
2009, 57 in 2008 and 52 in 2007. Moorland recorded 262, with 85 last year, 86 in
2008 and 91 in 2007. A Ministry of Justice Spokesman said: "The rise on
prisoner-on-prisoner assaults recorded at HMP Doncaster in 2009 was due to
restructuring in the prison whereby its young offender population was relocated
to a single block, rather than dispersed among the adult population. This
resulted in a temporary spike in assaults and particularly fights among young
offenders.
April 23, 2006 24 DASH
Prison officers are calling for all jail wardens to be better armed claiming
they should be given metal batons in order to defend themselves from assault.
The Prison Officers Association (POA) conference next month will vote on whether
the extendable baton should be allowed in many more prisons. The union's
national general secretary Brian Caton said he supported the proposals and
predicted the motions would be passed. Currently, staff at private prisons such
as Doncaster do not carry batons. "We would say that's wrong," Mr Caton said.
"Prisoners in private prisons are no less violent, they're no less difficult.
"You are twice as likely to be attacked in a private prison as in a public
prison." Last July the Chief Inspector of Prisons warned that staff at a
privately-run prison were being bullied by inmates. Anne Owers demanded urgent
action after discovering unsafe conditions at Rye Hill jail, near Rugby in
Warwickshire, which is run by GSL UK Ltd. Inexperienced officers were ignoring
misbehaviour and evidence of contraband in order to "survive" on the wings, the
report said.
April 12, 2006 Politics.Co.UK
The government has been forced to defend its use of private contractors to
run Britain's prisons in the wake of a critical report from the chief inspector.
Anne Owers says that while Doncaster is "by no means a bad local prison", where
relationships with staff and inmates are generally good, physical conditions are
"sometimes squalid". Many prisoners lack basics such as pillows, toilet seats
and working televisions, some cells are dirty and covered in graffiti, and she
highlights "institutional meanness" in making prisoners pay to change their
account number which allows them to call home. In her report, Ms Owers notes the
prison has good points, in particular in its resettlement of offenders and
community re-entry facilities, but warns the problems were all in areas "not
specifically mandated by the contract under which the prison is run". "There
remains a concern that, in focusing on meeting their contractual obligations,
prison managers had allowed important areas to slip below what was safe and
decent; and indeed may have sought savings in precisely those areas," she said.
Frances Crook, director of the Howard League for Penal Reform, seized upon
today's report as an example of the "manifest failings of private prisons". "It
exposes the fallacy promulgated by the Home Office that private prisons have
helped to improve prison conditions, raised standards or fostered advances in
the decent treatment of prisoners and staff. Doncaster shows that this is not
the case," she said. "Unsurprisingly, the chief inspector draws attention to the
fact that those areas in which the prison is failing are those in which it was
not contractually obliged by the Home Office to meet particular standards."
April 12, 2006 The Mirror
DONCASTER prison has been described as "squalid" and showing signs of
"institutional meanness" in a damning report by the jails' watchdog. Chief
Inspector of Prisons Anne Owers expressed concern that prison chiefs had let
standards slip at the 800-inmate jail and made savings to meet Home Office
contract targets. She claims the medium security jail, which is run by private
company Serco - formerly known as Premier Prison Services - had deteriorated
since it was last inspected in 2003. Her report said one example of "meanness"
was charging inmates 50 pence to change family telephone numbers on the
automated phone system, which was branded "particularly unfair" because of the
shortage of paying jobs in the jail. The chief inspector said: "Respect was
seriously undermined by the physical conditions in which many prisoners lived,
which in some cases were squalid. Many prisoners lacked pillows, adequate
mattresses, toilet seats, working televisions, notice-boards and places to store
belongings. "Some cells, especially on the young prisoners' wing, were dirty and
festooned with graffiti." First night cells were "squalid" with no hot water,
"lumps of foam" as mattresses and "dirty" bedding, said the report. In other
areas, bedding was "heavily soiled". Ms Owers also pointed out bullying problems
were not properly addressed at the prison and only 29 per cent of young ethnic
minority prisoners reported that staff treated them well. In 2003, Ms Owers said
Doncaster was a good jail which needed to increase the amount of purposeful
activities available - such as work or education - and improve first night
facilities. On her return last November, she found it had not tackled these
problems and had slipped back in a number of other areas. But, overall, she said
Doncaster was "by no means a bad prison". Making 156 recommendations for
improvement, Ms Owers said: "Our main concern was not only that managers had
failed to tackle problems we pointed out in our last inspection, but that the
prison had deteriorated in some important respects - all in areas not mandated
in the prison's contract. Yorkshire and Humberside regional offender manager,
Paul Wilson, said: "I am satisfied that Serco has responded quickly and
appropriately to the inspectorate's recommendations and that the director and
his staff are committed to continuous improvement of standards of offender
management."
May 6, 2005 The Mirror
VALENTINE'S Day killer Paul Dyson slit his wrists and
scrawled "Sorry" on his jail cell wall before admitting responsibility
for his girlfriend Joanne Nelson's death. The former bouncer, charged earlier
this week, smuggled a small blade into his prison. A guard found him slumped on
the floor of his cell in the early hours. Doncaster Prison, where Dyson is being
held, opened nine years ago and was Britain's first private jail. It is run by
Premier Prisons, which is partly American owned. The jail has been hit by
controversy in the past, with allegations of bullying and high numbers of
suicides.
Dovegate
Prison
Staffordshire, United Kingdom
Serco (formerly
Premier)
August 14, 2010 The Sun
ONE of Damilola Taylor's killers is claiming £100,000 from prison bosses for
failing to stop a lag from slicing off one of his ears. Evil Ricky Preddie, 23,
was lured into his attacker's cell and hacked with a home-made knife after a row
over a game of pool. Doctors could not sew the lug back on. Preddie is suing
private firm Serco, which runs Dovecote Prison, Staffs. Last night Damilola's
dad called the claim "outrageous". Richard, 62, said: "He doesn't deserve a
penny. Ricky was attacked in prison because he remains as arrogant as ever. "If
he had been sentenced properly - and by that I mean the death penalty - then he
could only launch his claim in hell." A Serco spokesman said: "Mr Preddie made a
complaint that we believe has no substance and have refuted."
January 26, 2010 Derby Telegraph
A FORMER prison officer has appeared in court accused of helping an inmate to
escape from a Derbyshire jail. Andrea Clarke is also charged with harbouring an
escaped prisoner and leaving a prohibited article for importation into prison.
Clarke had been employed at the privately-run Dovegate Prison. But the charges
relate to the escape of an inmate from Sudbury Prison, three miles away. The
36-year-old, of Burton, appeared at Southern Derbyshire Magistrates' Court
yesterday but entered no plea. The case was committed to Derby Crown Court.
Dovegate Prison, in Marchington, near Uttoxeter, is a category B prison run by
Serco. A spokesman for HMP Dovegate said: "The individual concerned no longer
works for Serco. We continue to fully co-operate with the police."
December 17, 2009 Liverpool Daily Post
A LIVERPOOL prison is among five in the country allowing its inmates to
watch satellite television. More than 4,000 prisoners enjoy the privilege in
private jails nationwide. Altcourse Prison, in Fazakerley, is among the
contractor-run prisons allowing access to a “limited number” of satellite
channels. The number of prisoners allowed to watch satellite varies according to
behaviour. But Justice minister and city MP Maria Eagle revealed the number was
currently around 4,070. The Garston MP was responding to a written question from
Tory MP Philip Davies. She said no inmates in public sector jails have access to
satellite in their quarters. But they do at Altcourse and other GS4-run prisons
in South Wales and Warwickshire. The other private prisons offering satellite
television are run by Serco in Staffordshire and Nottingham. Ms Eagle said: “In
these establishments, satellite television in cells is generally only available
to prisoners on the enhanced or standard level of the incentives and earned
privileges scheme.” There are 84,500 prisoners in England and Wales, meaning
around one in 20 has access to satellite TV.
December 8, 2009 Yorkshire Post
A JUDGE has urged a thorough investigation into how a dangerous criminal was
able to use a mobile phone in prison to organise the punishment shooting of
another man who might now lose a leg. Leyon Randall was in Dovegate Prison,
Staffordshire, serving an indeterminate jail sentence for robbery, kidnap and
firearms offences, at the time he arranged the shooting of Geovannie Meade in
Leeds in May this year. Yesterday Randall and his brother Lloyd were both jailed
for life at Leeds Crown Court after being convicted by a jury of conspiracy to
cause grievous bodily harm with intent to Mr Meade. Judge Scott Wolstenholme
said: "It is a very serious situation." It appeared Leyon Randall was able not
only to communicate regularly via a mobile phone but to organise the "ruthless
shooting from the comfort of his jail cell using a mobile phone he had had for
weeks if not months". It was also suggested during the case that had been done
with the connivance of officers at the jail. "That may be an outrageous lie but
it is something I would have thought needs thoroughly investigating," the judge
added. He said the shooting was carried out by Lloyd Randall because his brother
believed Mr Meade was spending too much time with his girlfriend Amy Farnhill.
The fact he was prepared to arrange such lethal violence to settle "petty
scores" confirmed the view he was dangerous. It also showed a mobile phone in
the wrong hands in prison could be a very dangerous weapon. Sentencing both to
life, the judge ordered Leyon Randall, 29, to serve a minimum of eight years and
Lloyd Randall, 29 of Recreation Street, Holbeck, Leeds to a minimum of seven
years in jail. Both denied any involvement in the shooting. Susanna Holdsworth,
26, a care assistant, found guilty by the jury of perverting the course of
justice, was jailed for two years. She gave Lloyd Randall an alibi for the time
of the shooting. Farnhill, 18, was cleared of conspiracy to pervert the course
of justice. The jury heard from David Dixon, prosecuting, that on May 9 Mr Meade
was invited to Farnhill's address in Lingfield Gate, Moortown, Leeds, but as he
arrived in the early hours he was approached by Lloyd Randall and another man,
and was shot in the leg by Randall. He had surgery in hospital and further
operations since but may still lose his leg. A spokesman for Serco which
operates HMP Dovegate said they had worked with West Yorkshire Police in the
case: "HMP Dovegate has a leading reputation for reducing and preventing the use
of illicit mobile phones. This year alone we have confiscated 46 illegal phones
from prisoners or visitors."
September 11, 2009 Burton Mail
A PRIVATE prison near Burton says it has taken action on failings surrounding
the death of a prisoner last year. The inquest of Simon Coutts, who was found
hanged in his cell at HMP Dovegate, in Marchington, in June last year, concluded
yesterday at Stafford Coroner’s Court. The 29-year-old, originally from
Manchester, was discovered by prison officers with a ligature around his neck,
days after receiving a ‘dear John’ letter from his wife ending their
relationship. Details of Coutts’ conviction or how long he was serving were not
disclosed at the hearing. The inquest heard from DC Dave Johnstone, the
investigating officer from Burton police, that Coutts used a sheet and a towel,
wrapped together using electric cable as a ligature. This was fixed to a
ligature point — consisting of a hook attached to a small wooden block stuck to
the wall using a powerful adhesive glue — with shoe laces. DC Johnstone told the
hearing that as well as the hook on the cell wall, there were also makeshift
shelves attached, and a bird cage holding a budgerigar, which was permitted in
the ‘therapeutic community’ (TC) which houses 200 of the prison’s 700 inmates.
Eric Pearson, the investigating officer for prison owner Serco, had told the
hearing the previous day that there had been ‘failings’ by prison staff, whom he
believed had not carried out cell checks on the night of Coutts’ death. He said
both the ligature point and toilet roll used to block the cell door’s glass
window should have been spotted and removed if correct checks had been
performed.
September 4, 2003
Staff at a private jail were so inexperienced they were unwilling or unable to
confront inmates, the chief inspector of prisons said today. Faults at
Dovegate prison in Staffordshire included a "cumbersome" system to
deal with insubordination, which allowed prisoners to "exploit the
situation" and avoid punishment, Anne Owers said. Operator Premier
Custodial Group was also accused of maintaining a "policy facade"
disguising a lack of effective systems. The report, though praising the
jail for its facilities and innovations, was seized on by prison reformers and
trades unionists who have long claimed privatised jails were inadequately
staffed. The 800-inmate category B jail near Uttoxeter held sophisticated
offenders who were "capable of exploiting any weaknesses or naivety in the
staff who supervise them," said Ms Owers. "There was a worrying
lack of experience and confidence among a young, locally recruited staff, few of
whom had any previous prison experience and who were operating with low staffing
levels and high staff turnover," the report said. "We observed
an inability or unwillingness to confront prisoners appropriately." Few
prisoners had privileges taken away even if they misbehaved, leading to the
whole system being "seriously undermined". Inspectors said in
their report: "Drug use appeared prevalent, yet drug reduction measures
were given low priority." They also found that a so-called
"personal officer" scheme designed to build a personal relationship
between staff and inmates existed "in name only". A survey by Ms
Owers' team found that 17 per cent of inmates reported being kicked, punched or
assaulted by another prisoner. But there was reluctance to stop bullying
even though an anti-bullying strategy had supposedly been put in place.
Premier has a 15-year contract with the Home Office to run Dovegate, which
opened in July 2001, although how much it is paid remains secret.
(Birmingham Post)
September
3, 2003
Homemade weapons and illicit hooch have been found at a privately run prison
where staff were so inexperienced that they were unable to confront the inmates,
according to a report by the chief inspector of prisons. The inspection at
the 800-inmate Dovegate prison, near Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, was carried out
in April and found that in contrast to the staff, the prisoners were so
sophisticated that they were able to exploit any weakness among the staff.
Anne Owers, the chief inspector of prisons, said Dovegate, with its young staff
recruited locally, provided further evidence for the critics of the private
prison sector. The company, Premier Custodial Group, operated the prison with
low staffing levels and a high turnover. But she said the prison, which
opened in July 2001, also provided evidence of good relations between staff and
prisoners. The prison was praised for its cleanliness and the time spent out of
cell by inmates in useful activities. It was to the credit of the prison
that the potentially dangerous mix of sophisticated inmates and inexperienced
staff had resulted in a mostly safe prison based on mutual respect, Ms Owers
said. But she criticised the "cumbersome" system for dealing with
insubordination which allowed prisoners to avoid punishment. A search
carried out the week before the inspection uncovered the weapons and alcohol,
suggesting that regular cell searches were not thorough. Kevin Rogers,
Dovegate's director, defended the prison's staffing policies and said it managed
with fewer staff than most state-run prisons because of the "open minds of
the new recruits" and union agreements which allowed it to run a more
flexible working system. (The Guardian)
Dover
Asylum Screening Centre
London City Airport
Group 4 (formerly run by Global Solutions)
September 12, 2005 BBC
Immigration detainees have been forced to sleep on tables
or plastic chairs because of sub-standard provisions, the prisons watchdog has
revealed. Facilities at Gatwick Airport, London City Airport and Dover Asylum
Centre were inappropriate for overnight stays, the chief inspector of prisons
said. City Airport was "unsuitable" for holding children, the report
said. The government said it takes detainees' welfare seriously but that
facilities may need independent monitoring. Holding centres at ports and
airports hold foreign travellers whose permission to be in the country needs to
be examined by immigration officers. But none of the centres inspected, all run
by private company GSL UK Limited, had adequate child protection arrangements,
according to the report. Inspectors found detainees were sleeping in inadequate
conditions, there were no regular healthcare visits and suicide-prevention
measures were not good enough.
August 16, 2005 BBC
Facilities at four short-term immigrant holding centres
have been condemned as "inadequate" by the prisons watchdog. Dover
Asylum Screening Centre, a centre at London City Airport and two at Gatwick
Airport are not suitable for overnight stays, its report says. Detainees
were found to have slept on tables or plastic chairs, it adds.
Immigrants
are only supposed to be detained for a few hours, but Chief Inspector of Prisons
Anne Owers said people were sometimes held overnight, and occasionally for up to
36 hours. Ms
Owers said none of the centres had adequate child protection arrangements.
A spokesman for GSL UK Limited, which was in charge of the
centres at the time of the inspections, said it was inappropriate to comment as
the company no longer ran them. The
centres have since been taken over by Group 4 Securicor.
Downview Women's Prison
Banstead, UK
Aramark
March 27, 2007 IC Surrey
REPLACING prison food with over-priced outside catering fare is a recipe for
disaster in a women's jail. This is the opinion of prison visitors whose latest
report says inmates much preferred 'porridge' the way it is. Aramark, the
company which has taken over the canteen at Downview Women's Prison, is typical
of the caterers who have taken over the food at many jails. And the report by
the Independent Monitoring Board claims the new system is not being welcomed
anywhere. The report says: "We were warned in advance by other independent
monitoring boards who had experienced a similar change to expect a disastrous
transfer - and it has been. "The decision to privatise the canteen may bring
cash benefit to the Treasury but the introduction of Aramark to run the prison
canteen has so far been a disaster. "For prisoners the canteen is one of the
most important facets of their lives but prices have risen sharply,the inventory
has shrunk, revisions take ages to implement and the administration is poor. "In
contrast the old prison-run canteen at least understood the needs of the
prisoners and charged prices that matched their wages. "It worked and this seems
to be the same story repeated throughout as prison after prison has lost control
of its canteens." In a report which praises "committed and dedicated" staff, the
board said all the faults it found with Downview were beyond their control.
Dungavel
Detention Centre
Lanarkshire, Britain
Wackenhut
September 21, 2003
Campaigners have reacted angrily to reports that the Dungavel asylum centre's
capacity is to be increased . The Home Office has confirmed that it is looking
at a £3m project to increase capacity by a quarter to 194. This would involve
new pre-fabricated buildings with bars on the windows being built at the centre
in south Lanarkshire. The Scottish National Party accused the Scottish Executive
of "dishonesty" and of hiding the plans. This is one of a number of
plans to increase the size of detention of state Home Office spokesman MSPs have
clashed over who is responsible for Dungavel as the UK Government is currently
in charge of immigration and asylum, but education in Scotland is a devolved
matter. An executive spokesman said again on Sunday that immigration and the
operation of Dungavel is reserved to Westminster and the Home Office. Collusion
claim A Home Office spokesman said: "This is one of a number of plans to
increase the size of detention of state. "If it goes ahead the capacity
will increase to 194. But the extra space will not be used for families and
instead will house single males." Linda Fabiani, SNP MSP for Central
Scotland, accused the executive of colluding with the Home Office. She said:
"Ministers are being very dishonest about this. They should be deeply
ashamed at what they are allowing the Home Office to do. "They're going to
have to take notice of the people in Scotland who know that they are breaching
human rights." The MSP claimed the plans were prove that Dungavel was being
used like a prison. She said: "They (the executive) have chosen to make
this place a prison and are actually building prison facilities with bars on the
windows. "They are locking children up in that environment." Labour
MSP Elaine Smith, the member for Coatbridge and Chryston, said the plans should
have been revealed months ago. Labour MP Michael Connarty, a campaigner against
the detention of children at the centre, said he was concerned. He said:
"We need to move away from this type of facility. "I'm concerned we
seem to be consolidating Dungavel's role. It is a prison establishment and
unsuitable for children." (BBC News)
September 11, 2003
Westminster has effectively ruled out educating children held at the Dungavel
asylum centre in local schools. Immigration Minister Beverley Hughes said
she wanted the "best possible education" provided for children inside
the centre. In a special debate in the Scottish Parliament, Scottish
National Party leader John Swinney appealed to MSPs to follow their consciences
and end the policy of detaining children. The privately-run centre in
South Lanarkshire, which can hold up to 150 asylum seekers, has caused
controversy by holding children in the former prison for long periods with their
parents. An SNP motion in parliament called for "an end to the
detention of children" at the Dungavel Immigration and Removal
centre. It also sought an end to "a system of detention of children
at Dungavel which denies them access to social contact and to educational and
other services in the local community". In an impassioned speech,
Scottish Socialist MSP Rosie Kane made clear her opposition to Dungavel.
She said: "Detention of innocent people is wrong. Dungavel and other
detention centres all over the UK are wrong. (BBC News)
September 6, 2003
About a thousand people have joined a human rights demonstration outside the
controversial Dungavel Detention Centre in Lanarkshire. The event was
planned to coincide with the second anniversary of the centre's opening.
Organisers the Scottish Trades Unions Congress (STUC) said the protest reflected
growing public concern over the treatment of asylum seekers there. A
spokesman said it was outrageous that asylum seekers and their families had been
detained in Scotland over the past two years, having committed no crime and with
no charges against them. (BBC News)
August
15, 2003
The long-term detention of children in immigration removal centres should
stop, the chief inspector of prisons has said. Anne Owers' call is made in
a report on the Dungavel detention centre in Lanarkshire, the only such centre
in Britain where children are regularly held for long periods. Opposition
politicians and churches in Scotland have demanded the closure of the 62-bed
family unit at Dungavel. The privately-run centre holds up to 148 failed
asylum seekers and other immigration detainees. (BBC News)
Elmley Prison
Kent, UK
Serco
May 24, 2010 Kent News
Four people, including a prison guard, have been sentenced for conspiracy to
supply drugs and mobile phones to convicts. The drugs had a prison ‘street
value’ of around £17,000 in HMP Elmley prison, and the judge described the
crimes as "very serious offences, as drugs and mobile phones are a form of
currency within prisons which can destroy prison life". Prisoner Darren Byrne,
30, of HMP Elmley, received eight years imprisonment for his role as ringleader
in the conspiracy. At Maidstone Crown Court Judge Gold said: "You were at the
hub of this conspiracy, orchestrating it all from within the prison walls". The
court heard how officers had found a mobile phone and Sim card in Byrne's cell
and the phone revealed a series of text messages between him and Carly Morris
revealing key information about the smuggling operation. Morris, 25, from Dover,
formerly a Serco court security employee working at Canterbury Crown Court, was
given a total of five years imprisonment for her role in the conspiracy. Judge
Gold said Morris "had a responsibility to transport and guard prisoners and that
she had abused her position of trust" by passing over drugs and mobile phones to
prisoners to smuggle back into HMP Elmley.
June 3, 2009 Little Hampton Gazette
A former prison worker has been remanded on bail after appearing in court
charged with trying to smuggle drugs into a Kent prison. Carly Joanne Morris,
24, who has left her post at Serco, was charged with conspiracy to supply drugs
into Elmley Prison on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent, along with three other
people. Prison inmate Darren Paul Byrne, 29, Dino Lewis Gillet, 37, unemployed,
of Canterbury Road, Westgate-on-Sea, and his wife, Sahra Naomi Gillet, 35, also
unemployed and of the same address, also appeared at Medway Magistrates' Court
for a preliminary hearing. All four are also charged with conveying prohibited
articles into the prison. Morris, from Dover, and Mrs Gillet were remanded on
bail. Mr Gillet and Byrne were remanded in custody until their next appearance
at Maidstone Crown Court on June 15. Officers from the serious and organised
crime unit within Kent Police's specialist operations directorate made the
arrests following a joint investigation between Kent Police and HMP Elmley
security department. More than 18 police officers were involved in the
investigation and arrests and properties in Grange Road, Ramsgate, and
Canterbury Road, Westgate-on-Sea, were searched. The arrests come after another
former Serco worker was charged with trying to smuggle drugs into the jail last
month.
May 14, 2009 BBC
A former prison worker has been charged with trying to smuggle drugs into a
Kent jail. Kent Police charged Zoe Spenser-Campbell, 25, with conspiracy to
supply controlled drugs into Elmley Prison on the Isle of Sheppey. The former
Serco employee was charged alongside labourer Jason Howsam, 26, who lives at the
same address in High Street, Herne Bay. A second man who was also arrested on
Tuesday was released without charge. The arrests followed a joint investigation
between the serious and organised crime unit within Kent Police's specialist
operations directorate and HMP Elmley security department.
Forest
Bank Prison
Agecroft, UK
Sodexho (Kalyx)
September 30, 2011 Manchester Evening News
A prison manager demoted over the dramatic escape of a gangster has been
found hanged at his home. Tony Purslow was part of an escort taking criminal
Michael O'Donnell to hospital in an ambulance when it was subjected to a
'terrifying' attack by a gang of bat-wielding masked men in Salford. O'Donnell,
who had been awaiting sentence for conspiracy to rob and commit burglary, was
sprung by the gang and spent nearly a month at large. Mr Purslow – who worked at
Forest Bank in Salford - was hauled before a disciplinary committee and demoted
to the rank of senior custody officer, cutting his salary by £10,000 a year.
Three other prison officers who were in the ambulance at the time of the escape
were sacked. Mr Purslow, 50, was found dead at his home in Leigh last Thursday.
He was immaculately dressed in a suit and had a picture of his family in his top
pocket.
February 11, 2011 BBC
A former prison nurse who smuggled a mobile phone into a Salford jail could have
put people's lives at risk, police have said. Leanne Cartledge, 23, of Miles
Platting, hid the mobile phone in her clothing and gave it to a prisoner she was
in a relationship with. She admitted taking a prohibited article into the
privately-run HMP Forest Bank prison last year. On Thursday, she was jailed for
four months at Minshull Street Crown Court. Det Con Phil Marsh, of Greater
Manchester Police, said: "Cartledge was employed in a position of a trust - a
position she abused when she smuggled a prohibited item into the prison and our
investigations revealed her actions had serious and far-reaching implications.
"Any time a mobile phone is illegally handed to someone who is in prison, it can
give that offender a lifeline to continue their criminality in the outside world
which has a knock-on effect for many people, potentially putting them at risk.
"It can also lead to fights between other inmates, bullying and witness
intimidation so clearly her actions were both foolish and dangerous." A
spokeswoman for Kalyx, which runs HMP Forest Bank, said they were not able to
comment on individual cases.
November 9, 2010 Manchester Evening News
Young prisoners are being tied up in bed linen and beaten by other inmates, a
report said today. The practice, known as "sheeting", is seen as horseplay by
some staff at Forest Bank prison, in Salford, Greater Manchester, but the Chief
Inspector of Prisons, Nick Hardwick, condemned it as "serious bullying" which
needs to be stopped. "A very vulnerable young man who spoke to us described it
as him being tied up inside a duvet cover and 'battered' every night," he said.
"A number of prisoners talked to us about 'sheeting' and these were incidents
that the prison had recorded on a number of occasions. "A prison officer on a
wing described it to us as horseplay. Prison management had limited knowledge of
it. We are satisfied this does occur and needs to be stopped." Forest Bank, a
category B local prison for adult and young adult men, was operating under its
full operational capacity of 1,424 prisoners at the time of the inspection
between June 29 and July 9, the report said. The report found that the prison is
making improvements in cutting out drug abuse - with only one in ten prisoners
failing a random drugs test in 2009 compared with four in ten in 2005. About
half of the prison's 110 young adults were held on the A1 landing, where most of
the incidents of sheeting took place and inmates there identified "serious
concerns about their safety", the inspectors said. "A prisoner was forcibly put
inside a duvet cover and the opening knotted so that he could not release
himself while perpetrators carried out random acts of violence," Mr Hardwick
said. "Prisoners told us that it was common and we met a number of young people
who had clearly been victimised in this way." He added: "We were concerned that
for a small minority of prisoners, it was not at all safe and in some cases,
prison officers on the wings had a passive attitude to bullying and unexplained
injuries - however good the policies."
May 28, 2010 BBC
A prisoner who cut off part of his ear so he could escape from an ambulance
in Greater Manchester has been arrested. Michael O'Donnell, 29, was on remand at
HMP Forest Bank in Salford when he took a razor to his ear while in his cell. He
was taken to hospital on 2 May, but on the way the ambulance was held up by
masked men and O'Donnell escaped. He was arrested at Pontin's in Southport,
Merseyside, on Friday on suspicion of escaping from lawful custody. Two other
men, aged 24 and 52, were also arrested on suspicion of conspiracy in assisting
an offender to escape from lawful custody. O'Donnell was sharing a cell with his
brother when the incident happened. He was being taken to Hope Hospital when a
stolen BMW pulled in front of it, forcing it to stop on Agecroft Road. Four
masked men then attacked the vehicle with baseball bats and bolt cutters and
O'Donnell, who was escorted by three prison guards, escaped. The BMW, which had
been stolen in a burglary on 30 April in Levenshulme, was later found abandoned
near to Lumbs Lane. O'Donnell was due to be sentenced at Manchester Minshull
Street Crown Court on Friday for conspiracy to convert criminal property, in
relation to a car cloning crime ring.
May 4, 2010 Manchester Evening News
A prison has launched an inquiry after a dangerous robber was sprung by a
masked gang as he was taken to hospital. Michael O’Donnell is believed to have
used a razor blade to slice off part of his own ear to set up his escape. The
gang stopped the ambulance taking him to hospital from Forest Bank prison in
Salford early on Sunday before forcing guards to free him. They then fled in a
stolen BMW. His escape was the third in five years from the privately-run jail.
In 2006, robber Michael Halligan, then 26, from Salford, gave two Forest Bank
guards the slip as he waited for a minor operation in hospital. The year before,
car-jacker Neil Brennan was sprung. He deliberately injured his hand and made a
phone call from inside the prison to tip-off his hijackers. Forest Bank opened
in 2000 at a cost of £46m and is run by Kalyx, which runs four prisons in
England and Scotland. The prison will consider how the gang appeared to know
precisely when the ambulance was due out of the prison and whether mobile phones
may have played a part in the operation. Colin Moses, chairman of the Prison
Officers’ Association, said: “Prisons should not be for profit. “It lowers
standards and lowers wages. As a result, you get incidents like this. We are in
an election when there’s a lot of talk about getting rid of the public sector.
If this is how the private sector runs a prison, it’s not very good. “Here we
have a prison given over to a group of profiteers and they cannot even keep
people in custody.” A spokesman for Kalyx said: “We refute any allegations that
our security measures would be compromised for any reason. “We have strict
security procedures in place and security training for prison officers is in
accordance with MOJ standards.” Detectives from the Major Incident Team of
Greater Manchester Police have searched addresses in Stockport and south
Manchester for O’Donnell, who has links to the travelling community and had been
awaiting sentence for conspiracy to rob. Assistant Chief Constable Ian Hopkins
said: “Given the timing and the nature of the attack, there’s clearly a degree
of planning gone into it.”
April 29, 2008 Manchester.com
The inquiry into why a man wrongly released from Forest Bank jail in Salford
was able to murder a man on a double-decker bus has criticised the criminal
justice system. Anthony Joseph was released from the private prison in Agecroft
despite an outstanding warrant for his immediate arrest from Liverpool crown
court over a burglary offence. Anthony Joseph, 23, stabbed Richard Whelan
several times on the top deck of a bus in London in July 2005 only hours after
he was released. The report, which was commissioned by the Home Office last
December, criticises the "lackadaisical" and "nonchalant approach" of the
criminal justice system when it comes to some offenders. Officials at Forest
Bank jail in Manchester have said they were not aware there was an outstanding
arrest warrant for Mr Joseph. The report also criticises the lack of
communication between law enforcement bodies. Earlier this month, government
figures revealed that a tenth of the prison drug finds in England and Wales
during 2007 were in Forest Bank. But the prison governor claims this reflects
the jail's high detection rate.
August 14, 2006 BBC
A prison officer from a private jail has been arrested over claims he made
nuisance calls to inmates' relatives. The 41-year-old man, who works at Forest
Bank Prison, in Salford, Greater Manchester, was arrested after prisoners and
families complained. The officer was held on 2 August and later bailed until 30
August. A Greater Manchester Police spokeswoman said a man had been arrested on
suspicion of misuse of telecommunications systems. Forest Bank, which opened in
2000, is run by United Kingdom Detention Services (UKDS). A spokesman for UKDS
said it had nothing to add to the police statement.
December 21, 2005 The Guardian
Inmates threw a bucket of excrement over prison staff as government inspectors
toured a privately-run jail, it emerged today. The chief inspector of prisons,
Anne Owers, revealed the incident - known in jail lingo as "potting" -
as she raised concerns about falling safety standards at Forest Bank jail,
Greater Manchester. The 800-inmate men's jail, which is run by UK Detention
Services, suffered 25 prisoner assaults a month and there had been 2,500
disciplinary hearings in just six months, she said. Drugs were "rife"
with four out of 10 compulsory drug tests coming back positive, her inspection
team found. The director of the Prison Reform Trust charity, Juliet Lyon said:
"This damning report reveals a prison that has become all too comfortable
with violence, drugs and bullying. When a bucket of excrement is thrown at
staff, during the inspection itself, you have to ask whether anyone is in
control at Forest Bank. "This is the latest in a series of worrying reports
suggesting that high staff turnover and lack of control in some private prisons
is creating a 'Lord of the Flies' environment that is dangerous for prisoners
and staff, and almost guaranteed to increase the chances of re-offending on
release."
December 21, 2005 The
Times
A PRIVATELY run jail is out of control, with high levels of assaults and a
culture on the wings of drug abuse, according to a highly critical report
published today. Prison officers were covered with a bucket of excrement by
inmates at Forest Bank jail as inspectors toured the building. The incident
known in prison slang as "potting" was the latest in a number of
similar attacks on prison staff. Anne Owers, the Chief Inspector of Prisons,
criticised the culture at the jail which was "steeped in serious drug
abuse". In one month alone, more than 2kg of cannabis, 60g of heroin and
4.6g of cocaine were found at the jail, run by United Kingdom Detention
Services. Ms Owers was so alarmed by the prison in Salford, Greater Manchester,
that she immediately alerted senior Prison Service officials to the extent of
the failings. "There had been a significant deterioration in safety so that
urgent management attention and remedial action was required to rebuild staff
confidence and properly regain control of the prison," the inspection
report said. A surprise inspection in July at the jail, run by UKDS, a
subsidiary of Sodexho Alliance which runs three prisons, found routine
intimidation of staff, prisoner assaults on other prisoners running at 25 a
month and staff turnover of 25 per cent a year. There had been 2,500 prisoner
discipline hearings in six months and 40 per cent of compulsory drug tests were
positive. Ms Owers said: "There were a series of assaults against staff,
including one unsavoury incident when a bucket of excrement was thrown into an
office and over two staff who were there, while we were at the prison. This was
by no means the first such 'potting' incident in the prison's recent history. We
were told there were two or three others in the previous couple of months."
The report depicts a prison where drugs are rife and that a high level of staff
turnover meant custody officers were unable to tackle problems. It is the second
report in less than six months in which Ms Owers has found serious problems of
control at a privately run jail. In July she found that staff at Rye Hill jail
near Rugby had little confidence in controlling prisoners and the premises were
"almost out of control". Staff turnover at the prison, operated by GSL,
formerly part of the Group 4, was running at 40 per cent a year. Private sector
involvement in the prison system has helped to spur the public sector to improve
its performance and introduced innovation into the jail system. But staff
turnover at private jails is higher than State-run jails - reflecting lower pay
for officers compared with those in State prisons. It is also difficult to get
information about what goes on in private jails with "commercial
confidentiality" used as a reason not to disclose details. One prison
watchdog said: "The private sector do not like anyone knowing too much
about what goes on in their prisons. If they could get away with giving out no
information at all, they would."
March 3, 2005 BBC
Police are searching for a "dangerous"
prisoner who escaped while he was being taken to hospital in a taxi. Convicted
robber Neil Brennan, 21, was handcuffed to two prison officers as they travelled
from HMP Forest Bank to Hope Hospital, Salford, on Wednesday. The taxi was
stopped by two men who threatened the guards with a gun, forcing them to unlock
the handcuffs. Brennan escaped with the men. Greater Manchester Police said
Brennan "may pose a danger to the public". Det Ch Insp Sam Hawarth
said the hijacking had been well-planned and that he believed Brennan may have
injured himself deliberately as part of the plot. He said he expected the Prison
Service to review its means of transporting prisoners in the wake of the escape.
"It would appear that using taxis in this manner is a regular practice, but
it is not one we were aware of," he said. The prison guards who were taking
Brennan from the privately-run HMP Forest Bank were not injured but were left
"shocked".
August 18, 2004
A GREATER Manchester prison is at breaking point - according to an officer who
has admitted trying to smuggle drugs into it. Norman Edgerton, 40, appeared at
Manchester Crown Court last week after pleading guilty to possession of heroin
with intent to supply. Now the contents of a letter the former prison officer
wrote to the judge, Recorder Cross, have been revealed. In it, Edgerton
criticises management at the prison, which is privately run by UK Detention
Services (UKDS). The company has rejected the allegations. "It's not good
enough to give officers keys, a badge and no radio, and expect two of them to
unlock 86 inmates, run the wing, and hope all goes well. "If officers are
to have any chance of doing their job effectively and within company
regulations, they need and deserve the support and back-up systems that are
there on paper only." He claims that officers ring in sick and quit their
jobs because they feel "helpless, stressed and can no longer cope". He
also alleges that inmates are becoming stressed at the lack of organisation on
the wings. In February, up to seven prison staff suffered memory blackouts after
their drinks were spiked during a night out. Last year, there was a security
alert after allegations that an officer supplied mobile phones to inmates; and
in 2002, an early Christmas party for prison officers ended in a brawl with
police being called. (Manchester)
Glasgow
Royal Infirmary
Glasgow, England
Sodexho
January 25, 2002
THESE were the
shocking scenes inside Glasgow's
largest hospital this week.
A joint management and union inspection team found
filthy conditions
throughout Glasgow Royal Infirmary in areas used by
patients and staff.
Now
unions at the hospital are demanding Health
Minister Malcolm Chisholm
sack the private cleaning contractor Sodexho for
failing to deliver decent
services.
Bloody
surgical "scrubs" from an operating theatre
are dumped in a lift used
to carry patients' meals. Staff say the area is
infested with cockroaches.
DANGER
MOVE: A porter
moves bags of contaminated
material, but is wearing no
protective clothing.
Workers say tunnels
below the Victorian-built
hospital have been turned into
firetraps by piles of waste.
And
staff have to wash themselves in a stinking
bathroom among damaged
brickwork that could harbour germs. There are more
piles of filth on the
floor.
Despite
this chief executive Maggie Boyle slammed our
investigation and
promised: "The cleaning contract for the hospital is
routinely monitored and
any problems identified are addressed."
However,
North Glasgow Unison secretary Carolyn
Leckie today called for
Sodexho's contract to be terminated.
She
said: "What we found is the result of years of
under-funding. This is
made worse by private firms milking profits and
potentially putting patients
at risk."
Staff
shortages are so severe two men have to shift
10tonnes of linen a day,
a job previously done by eight people.
Ms
Leckie said: "We want to an end to privatisation.
The
Trust can't solve
this problem on its own. We desperately need extra
resources from the
Scottish Executive." (John McCann)
Global Solutions Limited (now
Group 4)
January 30, 2008 Oldham-Chronicle
SECURITY guards were left red-faced after their prison van got stuck in a town
centre car park. Global Solutions Limited (GSL) is employed by the Prison
Service to transfer prisoners safely between court and jail. But the driver
caused a bit of a stir when the van became jammed in the former Co-op car park
at the back of Mecca Bingo on King Street. Police went to investigate but found
the prisoners had already been dropped off at Oldham Magistrates’ Court. A
police spokesman said: “The driver said he had read the height restriction
notice but thought the van would be able to clear it.” The driver and his
colleague then freed the van by letting air out of the tyres.
December 18, 2007 Yahoo Business Wire
Cognetas, an independent mid-market pan-European private equity firm
specialising in complex deals, today announces the sale of Global Solutions (GSL)
for £355 million to G4S. The sale, subject to EU merger clearance and South
African competition commission clearance, is expected to complete in 2008. GSL
is a leading provider of outsourced support services to public authorities and
corporate organisations worldwide. Services are typically provided under
long-term contracts (5 to 30 years) either directly to the end customer or
through joint ventures and Public Private Partnerships with government and
corporates. GSL has operations in the UK, South Africa and Australia. Its
service offering covers three areas: Custodial services, including prison
management, escorting, immigration, custody and training; Public Services, for
example healthcare, education and Local Authority services; and Business
services, comprising utilities, office accommodation and other managed services.
Cognetas backed the original MBO of GSL in 2004 in a £207 million (€309 million)
transaction. At the time, Cognetas underwrote equity and debt to facilitate
certainty for the vendor with an initial commitment of £105 million (€158
million) on behalf of Cognetas Fund I. This was reduced within two months to £54
million (€81 million) by introducing senior debt. The balance of the funding was
provided by Englefield Capital on behalf of the Englefield Funds. Since then
Cognetas has supported management in the implementation of a growth plan that
has seen revenues increase from £291 million in 2004 to over £400 million in
2007 through organic growth, in fill acquisition and expansion of services in
its sectors over three continents with the number of staff employed increasing
by over 25% to more than 9,500. Nigel McConnell, Managing Partner of Cognetas
commented: “We are delighted to be associated with the success of GSL over the
past three years and we are pleased to see that the dynamic management team has
built the business into a worldwide quality provider of outsourced services. We
leave the business on extremely sound and robust grounds which will help sustain
its continued growth. I am confident that being part of a larger global business
like G4S will take this business forward to a new level and I wish them well”.
November 29, 2007 The Telegraph
Group4Securicor is in talks to buy Global Solutions, a company it used to own,
for around £350m. Earlier this year, private equity firm Cognetas appointed
investment bank UBS to carry out a strategic review of Global Solutions, which
runs a number of Britain's prisons and detention centres. However, the credit
crunch forced Cognetas to put the review of Global Solutions on hold. Since
then, the company has received a number of approaches, including one from
Group4Securicor. Cognetas bought Global Solutions, which also manages hospitals,
schools and tourist offices, from Danish security firm Group 4 Falk for about
£200m three years ago. Group4Securicor is now understood to be carrying out due
diligence on the business. However, it is not the only company bidding. Sources
said US group GEO and several private equity firms have also made approaches for
the company. Global Solutions has previously come under the spotlight for the
way it runs its prisons and detention centres, following the Government's
privatisation of the sector. Earlier this year, there was a Panorama
investigation by an undercover BBC reporter, who worked as a custody officer, in
one of Global Solutions' prisons at Rye Hill. None of the parties involved would
comment.
August 26, 2007 The Observer
A possible sale or flotation of Global Solutions, which runs a number of
Britain's prisons and detention centres, has been shelved by private equity
owner Cognetas, according to City sources. UBS, the investment bank that was
appointed last month to undertake a strategic review of the prisons group, is
understood to have advised Cognetas against a move while global credit and stock
markets are still on tenterhooks. Cognetas bought Global Solutions, which also
manages hospitals, schools and tourist offices, from Danish security firm Group
4 Falk for about £200m three years ago. The company has stoked occasional
controversy, most recently after the BBC's Panorama programme looked into the
way Global Solutions ran Rye Hill prison, near Rugby, Warwickshire. The jail was
the subject of a report by the chief inspector of prisons, Anne Owers, who found
the staff were inexperienced. There has also been criticism of the way it runs
asylum centres - last year, a prisons inspectorate inquiry was ordered into
Yarl's Wood, an immigration removal centre in Bedfordshire that was formerly run
by Global.
June 14, 2007 The Telegraph
Global Solutions, a company that runs some of Britain's prisons and
detention centres, may be about to change hands for around £400m. Private equity
firm Cognetas, which owns Global Solutions, has appointed investment bank UBS to
carry out a strategic review of the business, according to sources familiar with
the matter. It is understood that the review is likely to examine a float, sale,
refinancing and possible future acquisition for the business. Sources stressed
that the strategic review might not necessarily lead to an imminent sale of
Global Solutions, which Cognetas bought in 2004 from Danish security firm Group
4 Falck for around £207m. The move comes as Global Solutions - which also builds
and manages hospitals, schools and tourist offices for several public
organisations around the world - has come under the public spotlight for the way
it runs its prisons and detention centres, following the Government's
privatisation of the sector. Earlier this year, there was a Panorama
investigation by an undercover BBC reporter, who worked as a custody officer, in
one of Global Solutions' prisons at Rye Hill. Global Solutions' detention
centres for asylum seekers have also been criticised. Last year, a prison
inspectorate inquiry was ordered after two refugees had to go to hospital
following prolonged detention in Yarl's Wood, an immigration removal centre
formerly run by Global Solutions. Cognetas declined to comment.
February 16, 2006 BBC
A councillor has called for an urgent review of security after two prisoners
escaped from Derby Crown Court in the space of a week. Derby city councillor
Richard Smalley said one of the prisoners was on remand for allegedly being
involved in a post-office robbery in his ward. Kabbar Kamara, 25, from Liverpool
made his escape after being refused bail. He appeared in a court on the top
floor before getting away in a manner likened to the fictional character
Spiderman. Unsuccessful search. He punched his way through the dock, ran from
the court and into a toilet. He squeezed through a window, climbed onto a roof,
jumped down to another level and dropped 12 feet to the ground. Police used a
helicopter and dogs to search for him but without success. Previously Fabian
Wilson, 23, from Derby absconded after appearing in court charged with breaching
a community service order. Mr Smalley, deputy Conservative leader on the city
council, said: "I think it's of paramount importance that the way offenders or
alleged offenders are handled within the court is looked at and tightened up."
Security at the court is handled by GLS, formerly Group 4. A spokesman said a
review would be conducted to identify any lessons that could be learned from the
escapes.
Group
4/Securicor (AKA Wackenhut, G4S, ArmorGroup)
Companies Use
Immigration Crackdown to Turn a Profit: Expose on immigration by Nina
Bernstein at the New York Times, September 28, 2011
Duty of Care: Expose by Clare Sambrook on G4S and the death of Aboriginal
elder Mr. Ward. June 8, 2011
January 13, 2012 The Guardian
The chairman of the company tasked with protecting athletes and visitors at the
London Olympics has paid the price for a failed deal to take over a cleaning
company and fallen on his sword. Alf Duch-Pedersen, who has headed the world's
largest security firm G4S for the past five years, said he was "sad" to be
stepping down this year but accepted the time was right to find a successor.
Chief executive, Nick Buckles, is still in a job but Duch-Pedersen is to go
after shareholders rebelled against a rights issue for a planned £5.3bn takeover
of Danish cleaning firm ISS. Investors would not support a £2bn money-raising
exercise unveiled last October – which would have allowed a merger to create a
group with more than 1.2 million staff worldwide – at a time of deep economic
uncertainty. Many analysts argued at the time that G4S – the result of an
earlier merger between Group 4 and Securicor – should concentrate on its core
protection work where it had won a groundbreaking contract to deliver back
office functions for Lincolnshire police – the first of its kind by a British
Police Authority.
November 22, 2011 The Guardian
Serious injuries or other life-threatening warning signs have been detected on
285 occasions when children have been physically restrained in privately run
jails over the past five years, according to Ministry of Justice figures. The
figure reflects the number of "exception reports" submitted by the four
privately run secure training centres to the youth justice board since 2006. The
warning signs triggering an exception report include struggling to breathe,
nausea, vomiting, limpness and abnormal redness to the face. Serious injuries
are classified as those requiring hospitalisation and include serious cuts,
fractures, concussion, loss of consciousness and damage to internal organs. The
MoJ figures, which have been disclosed for the first time, show that there were
61 such exception reports made last year. There have been 29 so far in the first
10 months of this year. Their disclosure comes as a two-day High Court challenge
is due to get underway over the MoJ's refusal to identify and trace hundreds of
children who have been unlawfully restrained in the privately run child jails
using techniques that have since been banned. Children's rights campaigners
believe they should be entitled to compensation. The Children's Rights Alliance
for England (Crae) has brought the case challenging the justice secretary, Ken
Clarke's, refusal to contact former detainees dating back to 1998, when the
first secure training centre opened. The legal challenge follows a second
inquest earlier this year into the death of 14-year-old Adam Rickwood, who was
found hanging in his room at Hassockfield Secure Training Centre, where he was
on remand in 2006. It concluded there was a serious system failure which gave
rise to an unlawful regime at the child jail. The use of several "distraction"
restraint techniques, that involved inflicting pain with a severe blow to the
nose or ribs, or by pulling back a child's thumb, were banned in 2008. The use
of physical restraint techniques to control teenagers simply for the purposes of
"good order and discipline" was also ruled unlawful by the court of appeal.
Carolyne Willow, Crae's national co-ordinator, said their lawyers will argue
there had been a chronic failure by the authorities to protect vulnerable
children over many years. "It was not children's responsibility to know about,
challenge and stop unlawful and abusive treatment," said Willow, adding there
were potentially thousands of former detainees who should now be contacted.
"Children in custody are among the most disadvantaged in society and they were
held in closed institutions where unlawful restraint was routine and ordinary.
It was the state, and the private contractors, who were duty-bound to protect
the welfare and rights of vulnerable children." She said that government
officials now had a duty to notify potential victims that their rights had been
infringed. The abuses should no longer remain hidden and unchallenged. The
security company, G4S, which operates three of the four child jails is also
joining the case as an 'interested party'.
October 21, 2011 BBC
Birmingham Prison inmates were locked in their cells for almost a full day after
a set of keys fitting every cell door went missing. Keys to the jail, which was
taken over earlier this month by private security firm G4S, disappeared on
Tuesday. The firm said all prisons had established contingency plans for
incidents of this nature and there was no risk to public safety. The jail is the
first in the UK to be transferred to the private sector. It is not known if the
keys have since been found or what action is now being taken at the prison.
October 17, 2011 BBC
Shares in G4S, the world's largest security group, fell almost 20% after it
announced a £5.2bn ($8.2bn) takeover of Denmark's ISS. G4S will pay ISS's
private equity owners cash and shares, and will raise £2bn from existing
shareholders to help fund the deal. ISS operations range from catering to
cleaning, while G4S services include running prisons and army training. The
takeover will double the size of G4S, giving it revenues of about £16bn. G4S
said the deal would create an estimated £100m of annual savings for the combined
business by 2014.
October 11, 2011 Canberra Times
The Commonwealth Government is suing its former immigration detention operators
for failing to protect it against lawsuits lodged by people kept in detention
facilities. The case will be heard in the South Australian Supreme Court on
November 21. It is part of a long-running case launched by former asylum-seeker
Abdul Amir Hamidi, who won a confidential settlement against the Federal
Government after almost five years in detention. As The Canberra Times revealed
on Saturday, Mr Hamidi's lawyers predict that the confidential settlement will
spark dozens more claims for damages. In a case to be heard on November 21, the
Commonwealth will claim its former detention centre operators - GSL and
Australasian Correctional Services - breached their contracts by exposing the
Government to the legal action. The Commonwealth will argue both companies
agreed to indemnify it against damages based on their running of Australian
detention centres. Australasian Correctional Services operated Australia's
mainland immigration detention facilities until early 2004. Group 4 Falck Global
Solutions Pty Ltd (which later changed its name to Global Solutions Limited, or
GSL) commenced management of the centres in late 2003. Both companies will fight
the claim, with ACS arguing it had insufficient time to respond to the
allegations and the terms of its agreement included dispute resolution measures.
GSL says it is not responsible for indemnifying the Commonwealth for any
''negligent, wilful, reckless or unlawful acts or omissions of the Commonwealth,
its employees, officers or agents''. Between 2000 and March 2010, detainees in
Australian immigration detention centres were paid more than $12.3million in
compensation for personal injury or unlawful detention.
September 11, 2011 Scotland on Sunday
HUNDREDS of thousands of pounds of taxpayers' money is being spent holding
asylum-seekers at Dungavel detention centre for months at a time. Scotland on
Sunday has learned that almost £500,000 has been spent housing 13 long-term
detainees, several of whom have been at the former prison in South Lanarkshire
for more than a year. Asylum-seekers are supposed to stay at so-called
pre-departure centres for no more than a week. But in a number of cases, delays
in the deportation system mean the UK Border Agency is holding people for an
unspecified period. For the duration of detention, the Home Office pays security
firm G4S £110 a day for each asylum-seeker. At Dungavel, two men have been held
for two years and four months, while others have been held for more than a year,
at a cost to taxpayers of about £480,000. Detaining Christian Likenge, 27, a
former law student from the Democratic Republic of Congo, who has been held for
28 months, has cost £100,000 to date. Likenge, a Christian preacher, is being
held after the UK rejected his application for asylum but officials in his
native country refused to give him the necessary identification to return home.
"It's very difficult and frustrating being here this long," he said. "It's
mental torture. I feel depressed. You miss your people, you miss your friends.
You feel half-dead."
September 7, 2011 The Age
Specialist security guards at a mental health hospital that houses some of
Victoria's most disturbed patients have been locked out over a pay push for an
extra $2 an hour. The union representing the guards now fears there could be
security breaches at the Thomas Embling Hospital, in Fairfield in Melbourne's
north-east, which houses psychiatric patients from the prison system, some of
them killers found not guilty on the grounds of mental impairment. The Health
and Community Services Union said about 10 guards found themselves denied access
to the hospital this morning and replaced by guards sent there by security
contractor G4S. The hospital's guards have been campaigning for nine months to
be paid the same as security officers who worked at public hospitals. They were
about to put in place bans on working overtime and filling out paperwork, the
union said. Union state secretary Lloyd Williams said the guards were paid about
$18 an hour, despite requiring specialist qualifications in dealing with
patients in a mental health hospital. The rate is about 10 per cent lower than
they received by guards who patrol public hospitals. He said his members wanted
pay parity with colleagues at public hospitals. Mr Williams doubted whether the
replacement guards had the appropriate skills to work at the hospital, and
lacked the detailed knowledge of patients and daily running of the centre. He
warned of a risk to the safety of patients, hospital staff and even the public
if security was breached. "That's our concern, that when - and not if - there is
a security problem, these people who are there now will not be able to respond
appropriately," he said. The hospital experienced one security breach yesterday,
when a man considered by police to be dangerous failed to return after being
sent out on day release. Dwayne Lee Spintal, 37, was apprehended peacefully by
detectives in South Yarra this morning. Mr Williams said the standing down of
the hospital's guards had been felt already, as one patient who was scheduled to
be taken to another hospital for medical treatment had to have his treatment
cancelled. "They clearly don't know how to run the facility because senior
management are shadowing them as we speak, making sure that something doesn't go
wrong," he said. "We know already because of the situation that a patient who
needed to go out of the hospital for [medical] treatment had to have that
treatment cancelled. "Clearly [G4S] are putting their profits ahead of patient
treatment." G4S said in a statement it replaced the guards under provisions of
the Fair Work Act.
August 29, 2011 UKPA
Two members of staff at a private security firm have been sacked after an
electronic tag was put on an offender's false leg, the company said. Christopher
Lowcock, 29, wrapped his prosthetic limb in a bandage and fooled G4S staff who
failed to carry out the proper tests when they set up the tag and monitoring
equipment at his Rochdale home. Lowcock could then simply remove his leg - and
the tag - whenever he wanted to breach his court-imposed curfew for driving and
drug offences, as well as possession of an offensive weapon. A second G4S
officer who went to check the monitoring equipment also failed to carry out the
proper test. Managers became suspicious last month, but when they returned to
the address a third time Lowcock had already been arrested and was back in
custody accused of driving while banned and without insurance. A G4S spokeswoman
said: "G4S tags 70,000 subjects a year on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.
Given the critical nature of this service we have very strict procedures in
place which all of our staff must follow. "In this individual's case two
employees failed to adhere to the correct procedures when installing the tag.
Had they done so, they would have identified his prosthetic leg. Failure to
follow procedure is a serious disciplinary offence, and the two employees
responsible for the installation of the tag have now been dismissed." A Ministry
of Justice spokesman added: "We expect the highest level of professionalism from
all our contractors, and there are strict guidelines which must be followed when
tagging offenders. "Procedures were clearly not followed in this case and G4S
have taken action against the staff involved. Two thousand offenders are tagged
every week and incidents like this are very rare."
July 8, 2011 POGO
Private security contractor ArmorGroup North America Inc. (AGNA) agreed to pay
$7.5 million to settle whistleblower allegations that it violated procurement
rules that put the security of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan at risk.
AGNA's parent company said the settlement was made solely "to avoid costly and
disruptive litigation—and that there has been no finding or admission of
liability." This is the same company whose employees are depicted in lewd
pictures POGO made available in fall 2009—which demonstrated a serious breakdown
in discipline among the security personnel defending the U.S. Embassy in
Afghanistan. POGO Executive Director Danielle Brian called it a 'Lord of the
Flies' environment. Former AGNA director of operations James Gordon was the
whistleblower who filed the lawsuit—he will receive $1.35 million from the $7.5
million AGNA has agreed to pay. According to a Department of Justice (DOJ) press
release, these are the whistleblower allegations that were resolved by the
settlement: •"AGNA submitted false claims for payment on a State Department
contract to provide armed guard services at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul,
Afghanistan"; •"[I]n 2007 and 2008, AGNA guards violated the Trafficking Victims
Protection Act (TVPA) by visiting brothels in Kabul, and that AGNA’s management
knew about the guards’ activities"; •"AGNA misrepresented the prior work
experience of 38 third country national guards it had hired to guard the
Embassy"; and •"AGNA failed to comply with certain Foreign Ownership, Control
and Influence mitigation requirements on the embassy contract, and on a separate
contract to provide guard services at a Naval Support Facility in Bahrain."
Gordon’s lawsuit was filed in September 2009. Nearly a year and a half later,
DOJ joined Gordon’s whistleblower lawsuit on April 29, 2011. Slightly more than
two months later, AGNA settled. According to DOJ statistics, whistleblower
lawsuits (or qui tam lawsuits) that allow insiders to sue on behalf of the
federal government have a much higher success rate when the government
intervenes and joins the whistleblower, known as a relator, in their lawsuit (or
parts of their lawsuit). In 2009, Gordon stated that he filed his lawsuit “to
hold ArmorGroup accountable for the blatant disregard of its obligations to
ensure the safety and security of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul. In an industry
where good people are required to face extreme risk on a daily basis it is
essential that those companies who disregard the rules be removed as they not
only endanger their own staff but also endanger the mission, all in order to
increase profit.” On September 14, 2009, POGO’s Executive Director Danielle
Brian provided testimony on the breakdown of discipline among many of AGNA’s
employees in Kabul before the Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and
Afghanistan. Shortly after the Commission hearing, Brian was contacted by Samuel
Brinkley, Wackenhut Services, Inc. (WSI)’s Vice President of Homeland and
International Security Services, who offered to work with POGO on behalf of WSI
and AGNA to identify and remedy mistreatment of victims of this hazing,
retaliation against some of the whistleblowers who had come to POGO, and other
matters raised in POGO’s disclosures. WSI is AGNA’s parent company. During the
intervening months, Brinkley and Brian had many discussions regarding the fair
and appropriate treatment for POGO’s whistleblowers and others not involved in
the wrongdoing. As a result, POGO was pleased that WSI/AGNA resolved the
employment concerns of those five personnel at issue. WSI issued a statement
yesterday as well in response to the DOJ press release announcing the
settlement. WSI disputed the DOJ’s assertion that there was a violation of the
False Claims Act, that it did not have an anti-trafficking policy in place, and
that it violated rules regarding third country nationals, and foreign mitigation
requirements. It also said “the sole individual confirmed to have frequented
prostitutes was fired by AGNA in normal course when his conduct became known.”
WSI noted that the period of AGNA’s alleged behavior predated WSI’s acquisition
of AGNA. Regarding the violation of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act,
Gordon’s allegations are more serious than they sound in the DOJ press release.
Last year, the Washington Post/Center for Public Integrity wrote about Gordon’s
case in the context of a perceived lack of U.S. enforcement regarding alleged
sex trafficking by U.S. contractors and subcontractors: In Afghanistan, evidence
of trafficking came to light when 90 Chinese women were freed after brothel
raids in 2006 and 2007. The women told the International Organization on
Migration that they had been taken to Afghanistan for sexual exploitation,
according to a 2008 report. Nigina Mamadjonova, head of IOM's counter-human
trafficking unit in Afghanistan, said the women alleged in interviews that their
clients were mostly Western men. In late 2007, officials at ArmorGroup, which
provides U.S. Embassy security in Kabul, learned that some employees frequented
brothels that were disguised as Chinese restaurants and that the employees might
be engaged in sex trafficking. A company whistleblower has alleged in an ongoing
lawsuit that the firm withheld the information from the U.S. government. James
Gordon, then an ArmorGroup supervisor, alleged that a manager "boasted openly
about owning prostitutes in Kabul" and that a company trainee boasted that he
hoped to make some "real money" in brothels and planned to buy a woman for
$20,000. The settlement is a victory for accountability, but ultimately may be
unsatisfying for critics of the government's less-than-robust oversight of
contractors. Can we really expect other contractors to see this settlement as a
wake-up call? The State Department fell asleep at the switch with AGNA and still
has yet to prove that it's serious about contract oversight and enforcement of
trafficking in persons regulations.
July 6, 2011 WA Today
The family of Aboriginal elder Mr Ward, who died in custody, is calling for any
court fines due to be issued today against those responsible for the death to be
invested in a community Environmental Science Centre. Warburton man Mr Ward,
whose first name is not used for cultural reasons, died from heat stroke in the
back of a prison van, with no working cooling system, after being driven 360
kilometres from Laverton to Kalgoorlie in 42-degree heat in 2008. State Coroner
Alastair Hope conducted an inquest into the death in 2009, concluding the
department, private prison security firm G4S and the two drivers had contributed
to Mr Ward's death. The state government and G4S have since pleaded guilty to
failing to prevent the death of Mr Ward, after charges were sought by WorkSafe
WA earlier this year. Both parties are due to be sentenced in the Kalgoorlie
Magistrate's Court today and are expected to face heavy fines of up to $400,000
each. In anticipation of the decision, Ward family spokesperson Daisy Ward has
written to Attorney-General Christian Porter asking for the fines to be
reinvested in the development of a beneficial science centre in the remote
community of Patjarr in the Gibson Desert rather than being put back into
government revenue. Ms Ward wrote: "I believe that when the magistrate brings
down his sentence, the penalty put on your government will come from
consolidated revenue and then be paid back into consolidated revenue. "This is
both hurtful and painful to us. This pain does not go away from us. Where is the
penalty? ... Any penalty that the company, G4S, has to pay will also go back to
your government. "... If the government is getting the money, could you think
about giving us the penalty monies because then it really is a penalty." An
environmental science centre would reflect the work carried out by Mr Ward to
educate environmental science students about indigenous land management,
according to his family. "We believe that this will give our families and
communities some justice for what happened, and will act as a living legacy of
his work," Ms Ward said. "If the fines imposed are paid to the government, this
will not bring any justice for what happened to my cousin."
July 5, 2011 The Advertiser
A PRIVATE security firm responsible for prisoner transport has been fined
$50,000. This comes after a review into the March escape from custody of Drew
Claude Griffiths. The review found private security firm G4S had failed to
secure a controlled entry point and van door on March 22 in the prisoner hold
area of the Parole Board's Adelaide premises, allowing Griffiths to escape. He
was recaptured on March 25 by STAR Group officers. Correctional Services
Minister Tom Koutsantonis said the fine sent a strong message to G4S. "This is a
message for G4S that any escape is unacceptable," Mr Koutsantonis said. "I am
getting sick and tired of prisoners escaping secure custody."
May 20, 2011 Palm Beach Daily News
A limited liability company associated with Richard R. Wackenhut of the
security-services fortune has paid a recorded $11.5 million for a landmarked
oceanfront home at 930 S. Ocean Blvd. The Palm Beach County Clerk’s office on
Friday recorded the warranty deed of sale for the house, which was built in 1929
by noted society architect Maurice Fatio for his own use. Broker Lawrence Moens
of Lawrence A. Moens Associates acted on behalf of the buyer, listed on the deed
as 1111 Partners LLC, whose sole managing member is Richard Wackenhut, according
to state records. He is the son of the late George Wackenhut, the Miami founder
of the Wackenhut security-services company. Richard Wackenhut served as CEO and
president of the company that went through ownership changes beginning in 2002.
Today it is part of G4S Secure Solutions, which last year changed its name to
drop a reference to Wackenhut. G4S Secure Solutions-North America is based in
Jupiter. The house was not on the market at the time of the sale, said Moens,
who arranged the deal privately. Moens said he had no comment about the buyer or
details of the sale. The house was sold by Steve and Linda Horn Inc., an entity
affiliated with Steve and Linda Horn of New York. The company had bought the
house for $9.45 million in 2005. Linda Horn, who owns an antiques and decorative
accessories shop in New York, said Friday she had no comment on the sale. Fatio
and his wife, Eleanor Chase Fatio, lived in the house at the intersection of
South Ocean Boulevard and Via Bellaria. Fatio designed the home in the
Florentine Renaissance style with an exterior featuring coral key stone, one of
his favorite building materials. The two-story, L-shaped home has a poolside
covered loggia featuring an arched colonnade and a pecky-cypress ceiling. The
house also has a 500-square-foot basement. Architectural features include French
doors — with sidelights and fanlights — that open onto the pool area and side
gardens. The Fatios lived in the house until 1930, when Fatio sold it to
Franklin Simon, a New York City department store owner. County property records
show that the limited liability company that purchased the house this week
bought other property owned by Richard Wackenhut. He and a land trust paid $3.95
million for a home at 338 Eagle Drive in Jupiter’s Admirals Cove in 2001.
Wackenhut took full ownership of the property a year later. Last November,
Wackenhut, acting with his wife, Marie, transferred ownership of the Jupiter
home to the same LLC that bought the South Ocean Boulevard house.
April 15, 2011 All Africa
The Mozambican judicial authorities on Thursday ordered the release of the 24
workers from the firm Group Four Securicor (G4S) who were jailed in Maputo
awaiting trial on charges relating to demonstrations outside the G4S offices on
6 April. The decision was made by Judge Ana Felisberto Cunha of the Maputo
Judicial Court, on presentation of declarations of identity and residence by the
strikers. The release of the workers comes after the company withdrew the
criminal complaints it had made against the group. According to G4S managing
director, Pedro Baltazar, the decision to withdraw the charges was taken during
a meeting of the Board of Directors held in Maputo on Monday as part of efforts
to find a peaceful solution to the labour dispute at the company. The workers'
lawyer, Salvador Nkamati, said that the 24 will have to wait for new
developments, and must comply with certain obligations imposed by the law. "They
will have to appear before the Court whenever requested, as well as other
relevant authorities such as the police and prosecutors" he explained. Riot
police used excessive force to disperse workers who were protesting outside the
human resources department of the Maputo branch of G4S. A riot police unit was
ordered to the scene after protestors broke windows and tore up fencing.
According to the newspaper "O Pais", despite having been beaten and arrested,
the security guards are still loyal to the company and are all set on returning
to work. However, the General Secretary of the National Union of Private
Security Workers (SINTESP), Julio Sitoe, argued that they should be entitled to
compensation from the company for injuries sustained when members of the riot
police violently attacked the demonstration.
February 16, 2011 The Street
After fiery closing arguments in the Smith v. Walmart trial, a jury found
Wackenhut, but not Wal-Mart(WMT), liable for inadequate security in a store
parking lot where a customer was murdered. The jury awarded over $1M in damages.
Michael Born was murdered in a Wal-Mart parking lot while replacing his car's
headlight. The plaintiffs claimed that Wal-Mart knew the store was located in a
high-crime area, and that police were repeatedly called to the site. However,
neither Wal-Mart nor its hired security service, Wackenhut, took adequate
measures to protect Wal-Mart customers. Plaintiff attorney Mont Tanner reminded
the jury that there had been more than a hundred similar incidents of serious
crimes at the store, such as battery and robbery, most within the two years
prior to the murder. However, said Tanner, there was no annual security
assessment at this "crime magnet" by either Wal-Mart or Wackenhut, and the
Wackenhut patrol officer was not trained to identify or deal with suspicious
persons. Wal-Mart also allegedly failed to comply with its own security
guidelines.
February 8, 2011 The Guardian
The Guardian has obtained a training video used by Securicor - now G4S - to
instruct guards deporting asylum seekers on flights. The footage forms part of a
dossier of evidence produced by G4S whistleblowers. The inaugural flight to
Afghanistan should have been a showcase for a multinational company vying for
the lucrative contract to deport foreign nationals on behalf of the British
government. The plane heading to Kabul on 26 January 2004 had been chartered by
a company that would go on to become part of the world's largest private
security firm – G4S. Its cargo included refused asylum seekers in handcuffs. A
number had their legs bound with tape and had been placed in the first-class
cabin. But according to new evidence some of the guards on that flight,
recruited to supervise the deportation, had not completed a full training
course, and they included a number of inexperienced prison staff. Some had not
even received Home Office accreditation. Shocking details about that flight and
dozens more are contained in previously unseen evidence to parliament obtained
by the Guardian. The documents reveal how G4S employees spent several years
raising concerns about the potentially lethal methods being used on refused
asylum seekers. The most disturbing technique involved bending deportees over in
their seats and placing their head between their legs. The procedure became
known within the company as "carpet karaoke" because it would force detainees,
struggling for breath, to shout downwards toward the floor. Although an
apparently successful method of keeping disruptive detainees quiet, it can lead
to a form of suffocation known as positional asphyxia. Its alleged use is
documented in written testimony by four G4S whistleblowers, submitted to the
home affairs select committee in the aftermath of the death of Jimmy Mubenga, an
Angolan who died on a British Airways flight from Heathrow in October last year.
The cause of Mubenga's death remains unknown. Passengers on BA flight 77
reported seeing three guards heavily restraining the 46-year-old, who they said
had been bent over and complained of breathing difficulties before his collapse.
Police later arrested the guards in connection with the death and recently
extended their bail until next month. Grievances -- All four whistleblowers have
registered personal grievances against G4S, including some that have been
settled out of court. Some are understood to have been themselves accused of
inappropriate behaviour or later barred from conveying their concerns to the
press. However, they now accuse G4S managers of presiding over a "macho"
corporate culture that ostracised staff who showed compassion towards detainees
or questioned the safety of their treatment. One of the whistleblowers, the
company's serving charter operations manager, concedes that his detailed dossier
to parliament is likely to result in his dismissal. The dossier records how he
repeatedly wrote to his seniors expressing concerns, including one letter in
which he stated that some G4S employees were playing "Russian roulette with
detainees' lives".
December 26, 2010 The Guardian
A security company has recruited two former senior civil servants, sparking an
outcry about the "revolving door" between Whitehall and the company. G4S,
formerly Group 4 Securicor, hired Dr Peter Collecott, the one time director of
corporate affairs at the Foreign Office, and David Gould, the Ministry of
Defence's former chief operating officer in charge of defence equipment,
according to a government report. The company, whose guards are under
investigation over the death of deportee Jimmy Mubenga, supplies armed guards
for embassy staff around the world. It has recruited former ministers including
Lord Reid as well as senior figures in offender management. The disclosure comes
two weeks after Sir George Young, the leader of the Commons, said he would
examine the "revolving door" between Whitehall and defence companies. Denis
MacShane, the Labour MP for Rotherham, called for a closer examination of civil
servants before they are allowed to take private sector roles that may overlap
with their former public duties. "There is great excitement over politicians and
outside interests but the real issue is the gilded path from Whitehall where
billions of pounds worth of public spending decisions are made into employment
with companies that gained from such contracts and contacts," he said. "We need
new rules so that anyone in public service cannot go straight into employment
with companies to which they previously awarded contracts." Harry Fletcher, the
assistant general secretary of the probation union Napo, who has been critical
of the way G4S has recruited senior civil servants from the Home Office, said:
"Appointments such as these give G4S a commercial advantage over their rivals
and will encourage others to go down the same route." The appointments are
listed in the latest report from the Advisory Committee of Business
Appointments, released earlier this month. Collecott, 60, was the ambassador in
Brazil from 2004 to 2008. He was a member of the Foreign Office's senior
leadership forum that brought together the most senior heads of mission
overseas. G4S said he has worked for their company on two separate domestic
projects – once in 2009 and again this year, a contract which ended in
September. The company has declined to explain the nature of the project. Gould,
the MoD's former chief operating officer of defence equipment and support –
which put him in charge of billions of pounds worth of procurement contracts –
took up a consultant post with G4S last year. He left the MoD in 2008, and has
also had roles at Selex Sensors and Airborne Systems Ltd. A spokesman for G4S
said he worked on a specific project with G4S in 2009. Last month, G4S prompted
an outcry by hiring Philip Wheatley, the former director general of the National
Offender Management Service. Wheatley's G4S role, which he takes up just as Ken
Clarke launches a plan to privatise much of the probation service he managed
until June, has been criticised by probation unions. Wheatley's appointment is
part of a pattern of G4S lobbying over probation privatisation. The company paid
for a meeting at the last Conservative conference, where G4S "offender
management" executive Jerry Petherick, spoke alongside the prisons minister,
Crispin Blunt.
October 29, 2010 Financial Times
G4S, the security group, is to be replaced on a £30m-a-year ($48m) contract to
deport detainees from the UK, the Home Office said. The loss comes after three
security guards employed by G4S were arrested over the death of an Angolan man
last week. However, the UK Border Agency said its decision to award a new
four-year “escort services” contract to Reliance Security rather than G4S, which
had done the job for the past five years, had no connection with the incident.
Jimmy Mubenga, a 46-year-old deportee, died after he collapsed onboard a British
Airways flight that was preparing to depart to his homeland from London’s
Heathrow airport. The Home Office declined to disclose the sums involved in the
G4S or Reliance contracts, citing commercial confidentiality. However, G4S said
that it would take a hit of £30m in revenues and £2m in profits next year – a
fraction of the company’s £7.4bn forecast sales and £393.7m pre-tax profits in
the year to the end of December. Shares in G4S fell 4.8p at 261.7p. G4S said it
was disappointed at the decision to hand the contract to its privately owned
rival.
October 28, 2010 The Sentinel
A SECURITY guard who stole £20,000 worth of takings he collected from
supermarkets has avoided an immediate jail sentence. Group 4 van driver Stuart
Grey would park up after collecting cash from Morrisons, Asda or Somerfield and
remove a bundle containing £1,000, Stafford Crown Court heard yesterday. He was
caught when Morrisons launched an internal investigation over missing money and
laid a trap with marked notes from its store in Stone. Pat Sullivan,
prosecuting, said a collection from Stone in April was £1,000 short when it
reached the company's headquarters. Police carried out a search of the
defendant's Stoke-on-Trent home and found £460 of the company's money hidden in
a washing machine and a mug, plus a bank deposit slip for £260. Grey explained
how he had been stealing cash. He said he drove away from the store, pulled over
a short distance away, opened up sealed plastic bags and took one bundle of
notes containing £1,000. Grey had done it a total of 20 times over a period of
14 months from January last year. How he got away with it for so long was yet to
be explained.
October 15, 2010 Bloomberg
Computer Sciences Corp., an information-technology company that relies on
government business for almost 40 percent of its revenue, won $4 billion in U.S.
contracts in fiscal 2009 after failing to pay more than 250 employees the wages
and benefits they were owed. Computer Sciences, based in the Washington suburb
of Falls Church, Virginia, topped a list of 15 companies that received more than
$6 billion in federal contracts despite records of wage, health or safety
violations, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office. Tyson
Foods Inc., the largest U.S. chicken processor; Corrections Corp. of America,
the nation’s biggest private operator of prisons; and Wackenhut Services Inc.,
owned by U.K.- based security contractor G4S Plc, are also among the contractors
identified. The names of the companies, not revealed in the public report
released Oct. 1, were provided by Representative Robert Andrews, a New Jersey
Democrat who criticized the awarding of contracts to companies that didn’t meet
required standards. “If a company has a pattern of violations, at the very
least, it should raise greater scrutiny before they get government contracts,”
Andrews, chairman of the panel that requested the investigation, said in a
telephone interview. “There doesn’t seem to be much incentive to follow the laws
because you can still get a contract anyway.” The report by the GAO, the
investigative arm of Congress, covered a sample of contracts in the fiscal year
that ended on Sept. 30, 2009. ‘Work to Do’ -- Computer Sciences, which was
awarded the $4 billion from the Defense Department and NASA, was assessed $1.6
million in back pay by the Labor Department covering a five-year period. Tyson,
with more than $500 million in Defense, Agriculture and Justice department
contracts, was cited for more than 100 health and safety violations by the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the GAO said. Wackenhut, which
received $200 million in security contracts with the Defense, Agriculture and
Homeland Security departments and NASA, violated fair-labor laws, according to
Labor Department data cited by the GAO. “Some companies that continue to receive
lucrative government contracts not only pay rock-bottom wages, but have long
histories of labor and workplace safety violations,” Representative Patrick
Murphy, a Pennsylvania Democrat who joined in requesting the GAO report, said in
an e-mailed statement. “We have a lot of work to do to ensure that the federal
contracting process encourages safe and good-paying jobs.” Workers Misclassified
-- In addition to the pay violations, Computer Sciences didn’t provide
protections against cave-ins for employees working in a trench more than 10 feet
(3 meters) deep, according to a 2006 inspection by the occupational safety
agency cited by the GAO. Chris Grandis, a company spokesman, said Computer
Sciences paid the back wages to employees assigned to a U.S. immigration office
in Vermont in 2009, after the Labor Department found they had been misclassified
as contract workers entitled to less compensation. The company also received a
minor citation from the occupational safety agency and agreed to pay a small
fine, he said. Computer Sciences, a government contractor since 1961, received
37 percent of its $16.1 billion in revenue from federal contracts in the fiscal
year ended April 2, according to a regulatory filing. Army, Immigration -- It
ranked 12th in U.S. government contracts in fiscal 2009, the year studied by the
GAO, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Its biggest federal contract that
year was with the U.S. Army to provide engineering and logistics support for the
Communications-Electronics Life Cycle Management Command. Computer Sciences also
has a contract with the Homeland Security Department for a processing system
used in applications for immigration benefits and services. The company said on
Oct. 4 that it was one of four firms that will share in a $2.8 billion contract
by the Social Security Administration for consulting and information technology
services. Tyson has received more than 100 U.S. health and safety citations,
including for an incident in which a worker died after being asphyxiated in a
pit of wastewater debris, according to the GAO report. Last year, Springdale,
Arkansas-based Tyson won $500 million in federal contracts, the GAO’s report
showed. Gary Mickelson, a Tyson spokesman, said the company seeks to comply with
federal regulations and the report doesn’t give “the full context of the issues
involved, nor does it report the measures our company takes to operate
responsibly.” Corrections Corp. -- Corrections Corp., based in Nashville,
Tennessee, was cited for five safety violations since 2005 and for failing to
follow labor laws when firing an employee for union participation, according to
the GAO. Last year, it was awarded $800 million in contracts, the agency said.
Steve Owen, a Corrections Corp. spokesman, said the U.S. contracts are subject
to oversight and accountability. He declined to comment on safety and labor
violations cited in the GAO report. Wackenhut, based in Palm Beach Gardens,
Florida, received $200 million in contracts, the GAO said. From 2005 through
2009, the Labor Department said the company owed $4.4 million in back wages to
more than 2,100 employees, and OSHA cited the company for seven cases of health
and safety violations, resulting in $9,000 in fines. The company agreed this
year to pay $290,000 in back pay and interest to 446 rejected black job
applicants. Susan Pitcher, a Wackenhut spokeswoman, said the company had no
response to the report. Violations by other federal contractors included hiring
undocumented workers, failing to meet environmental standards and fraudulently
billing Medicare or Medicaid, according to the report.
August 27, 2010 Yahoo
Judge James Cacheris of the United States District Court for the Eastern
District of Virginia has denied Defendants ArmorGroup North America ("AGNA"),
ArmorGroup International, Wackenhut Services, Inc., and Cornelius Medley's
motions to dismiss whistleblower James Gordon's lawsuit brought under the False
Claims Act. On September 9, 2009, Mr. Gordon, former Director of Operations of
AGNA, filed a whistleblower retaliation lawsuit under the False Claims Act in
United States District Court for the District of Columbia, charging that
ArmorGroup management retaliated against him for whistleblowing, internally and
to the United States Department of State ("DoS"), about illegalities committed
by ArmorGroup in the performance of AGNA's contracts with the United States to
provide security services at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan and at the
U.S. Naval base in Bahrain. The Complaint charges that during Mr. Gordon's
seven-month tenure as Director of Operations, he investigated, attempted to
stop, and reported to DoS a myriad of serious violations committed by ArmorGroup,
including: •Severely understaffing the guard force necessary to protect the U.S.
Embassy; •Allowing AGNA managers and employees to frequent brothels notorious
for housing trafficked women in violation of the Trafficking Victims Protection
Act; •Endangering the safety of the guard force during transport to and from the
Embassy by attempting to substitute company-owned subpar, refurbished vehicles
from Iraq rather than purchasing armored escort vehicles as promised to DoS;
•Knowingly using funds to procure cheap counterfeit goods from a company in
Lebanon owned by the wife of AGNA's Logistics Manager; and •Engaging in
practices to maximize profit from the contract with reckless disregard for the
safety and security of the guard force, the U.S. Embassy, and its personnel. In
his Memorandum Opinion (August 27, 2010), Judge Cacheris noted that "Plaintiff
alleges and Defendants offer no facts to dispute that Defendants ... began to
try to constructively discharge [Mr. Gordon] by 'making [his] working conditions
intolerable.'" Judge Cacheris further noted that "Plaintiff alleges, and
Defendants have not offered any evidence refuting the fact, that [Defendant]
Medley excluded Plaintiff from management meetings, shunned him, and relegated
him to a position of persona non grata in the office" and that "Medley made
clear to Plaintiff by his behavior, and to other staff members by his direct
boasts, that his priority was to force Gordon to quit." In denying Defendants'
Motion for Summary Judgment, Judge Cacheris concluded that "there is a genuine
issue of material fact regarding the continued nature and duration of the
allegedly illegal acts Plaintiff was requested and required to participate in."
The parties will now proceed into the discovery phase of the litigation.
According to Debra S. Katz, counsel for Mr. Gordon, "this is an important
victory for conscientious employees, like Mr. Gordon, who blow the whistle on
fraudulent practices by defense contractors and wind up then paying the ultimate
price. The court's decision today makes clear that such employees can bring
federal claims under the False Claims Act to obtain redress."
July 29, 2010 WA Today
The family of an Aboriginal elder who roasted to death in searing heat in the
back of a prison van will receive a $3.2 million compensation payment from the
WA government, one of the largest such payouts in Australian history. It is an
ex-gratia settlement by the government to the family of Mr Ward, whose full name
cannot be used for cultural reasons, and includes a $200,000 interim payment
already awarded. Attorney-General Christian Porter today revealed $1.4 million
of the money would go to Mr Ward's widow, Nancy Donegan, with amounts of
$400,000 to be placed in trust accounts for each of her four children. Mr Ward,
46, of Warburton, died in January 2008 while being transported 360 kilometres
from Laverton to Kalgoorlie to face a drink-driving charge. Temperatures in the
van, operated by private security company G4S, reached more than 50 degrees
after it was revealed the air-conditioning in the van was broken. The
compensation - which Mr Porter said was one of the largest ex-gratia payments by
a government in Australian history, as well as that of common law countries -
came after negotiations with the family's lawyers, the Aboriginal Legal Service,
and on receipt of legal advice detailing what action could be brought against
the state, and what that case might look like. It represented an "unequivocal
apology" by the government. "It's meant to show contrition... deep, deep,
remorse for what has occurred," Mr Porter said. It also took into account the
fact that no criminal charges would be laid. While it did not come with an
admission of liability, Ms Donegan could still take legal action if she chose.
An "initial view" was that legal action would be likely, Mr Porter said. "I
don't know if that position will change by virtue of this payment," he said. "If
this does not bring finality to the family, (if civil action was to be
launched), we don't want to stand in the way of Ms Donegan embarking on that
action." ALS chief executive Dennis Eggington said that his organisation would
consult with Mr Ward's family about possible civil proceedings against both the
government and G4S. The ALS also requested further information to determine
whether it would apply to have a coronial inquest into the death reopened. He
described the culpability of G4S as "astronomical" and called on the company to
apologise. "That's the least G4S can do," he said. "They have been very quiet in
all of this. We've been very disappointed." ALS director of legal services Peter
Collins said the role of G4S in Mr Ward's death was "absolutely diabolical". "It
was their van, their employees driving the van, at a bare minimum (G4S) should
be offering compensation to the family," he said.
July 28, 2010 Scoop
A private prison company that is bidding to run Mt Eden remand prison is under
scrutiny in Australia for failing to make recommended changes after a high
profile death in custody, said the Green Party today. An Australian
parliamentary inquiry this week has heard that G4S has not implemented all the
recommendations of an inquiry into the death of an Aboriginal elder in 2008. In
particular, G4S has not been providing training to its workers in remote areas,
according to Ian Johnston, the Australian Department of Corrective Services
Commissioner. Green Party Corrections spokesperson David Clendon said “All of
the prison corporations bidding to run Mt Eden remand prison have skeletons in
their closets. It’s time for John Key’s Government to review whether any of
these companies are suitable to operate in New Zealand,” said. “It is not good
enough for the Minister to hide behind the tender process. She needs to let the
public know what the minimum standards are for prison corporations who want to
operate in New Zealand.” There had been two damning reports of G4S UK operations
in the last month and now their Australian operations were coming under
scrutiny, added Mr Clendon. “New Zealand’s public prisons are a long way from
perfect but the evidence shows that privatisation is no magic bullet. It will
not make our prisons safer, better or cheaper. “The community and public sector
have lots of good innovative ideas about how the prison system can be improved.
The Government should listen to them rather than flogging off prison management
to corporations. “Private prisons have to make a profit, which means either cut
backs on staff levels and rehabilitation, or charging more per prisoner. The
perverse incentive to make a profit out of prisoners is at the heart of the
problem,” said Mr Clendon.
July 2, 2010 APP
Protesters over an Aboriginal elder's death from heat stroke in a prison
van have accused the West Australian Director of Public Prosecutions of
racism for not laying charges. More than 100 people rallied outside DPP
Joe McGrath's office in downtown Perth office on Friday chanting "Racist
Police" and "Racist DPP". Mr McGrath announced on Monday that no charges
would be laid against two security guards over the 46-year-old elder's
death because there was insufficient evidence of criminal negligence.
June 27, 2010 The Western Australian
The State's top prosecutor has told the family of an Aboriginal elder
who died of heatstroke in the back of a prison van that criminal charges
will not be laid over his shocking treatment. The West Australian
understands that DPP Joe McGrath flew to the remote community of
Warburton over the weekend where he broke the news to relatives of Mr
Ward. The decision is expected to get an angry reaction from family
members who have long called for charges to be laid over the matter. The
West Australian was unable to contact Mr Ward's relatives today. A
spokeswoman for the DPP declined to comment. The latest development
comes a year after State Coroner Alastair Hope handed down a damning
report on the disgraceful treatment of Mr Ward, whose first name is not
used for cultural reasons. Mr Hope found two transport guards, Nina
Stokes and Graham Powell, the Department of Corrective Services and
private prison transport company G4S had contributed to Mr Ward's death.
Mr Ward died after being driven 360km in a prison van from Laverton to
Kalgoorlie in 42C without air-conditioning in January 2008. Mr Ward's
cousin told The West Australian earlier this month that that the matter
had dragged on too long and the family wanted both drivers charged as
soon as possible over the death. Daisy Ward said at the time that family
members were getting frustrated about the lack of action and wanted
justice. "I still want them to lay a charge," she said last month. "If
it was an Aboriginal person that did that, they would get thrown behind
bars. My cousin was like in a furnace…like he was cooked alive in the
back of the van." Deaths in Custody Watch Committee Marc Newhouse said
this afternoon that he was shocked and dismayed to learn that the DPP
would not press charges against the two guards who transported Mr Ward.
He said the information on how the DPP reached the decision needed to be
released publicly. "There has basically been a lack of transparency in
this whole process," he said. "It just highlights that there are some
serious flaws in our justice system that when something of this nature
happens and no-one is brought to account for negligence." Mr Newhouse
said Mr Ward's family and community of Warburton would be devastated by
the decision. "It is a complete kick in the guts," he said. "It is going
to do nothing for Aboriginal people's confidence in the criminal justice
system and particularly where Aboriginal people are the victims." "The
community has been very, very patient, including the family, and that
patience has just ended." Mr Newhouse said the Deaths in Custody Watch
Committee would seek legal advice to determine whether charges could be
brought against the Department of Corrective Services or private
prisoner transport company, G4S. Mr Hope referred his report to the DPP
under a section of the legislation which allows his findings to be sent
to prosecutors on the basis that he believed indictable offences may
have been committed. But in his written findings, Mr Hope recognised
that legal issues relating to the involvement of various individuals and
organisations were "complicated". "I do not wish to create unrealistic
expectations on the part of the family or in the hope that they will see
'justice' as a result of such a report (to the DPP) being made," Mr Hope
said.
April 7, 2010 Info 4 Security
G4S Wackenhut is changing its name to G4S, in turn reflecting the company’s
vision of providing comprehensive security solutions. Brian Sims reports. By
building on Wackenhut’s proven success in the States as "the premier supplier of
manned security services" G4S has aggressively positioned itself to deliver a
new category of integrated security solution that combines manpower and
technology. Through a series of acquisitions that includes the Nuclear Security
Services Corp, Touchcom Inc, Adesta and AMAG Technology, G4S will continue to
evolve its core competencies from its Wackenhut roots to deliver integrated
security solutions for greater performance and efficiency. “Our transformation
from G4S Wackenhut to G4S is not something that happened overnight,” explained
Drew Levine, president of G4S Secure Solutions. “Since before Wackenhut became
part of the G4S family of companies, we’ve been developing new and more
efficient means of supplementing our security officers with powerful
technologies such as our Secure Trax Management Software platform." Levine
added: "Now, with the global resources of G4S behind us, we can deliver a wider
range of services – including security consulting, design and engineering;
compliance and risk management; facilities management and remote video
monitoring. That being the case, we can offer truly integrated security
solutions, unlike any other company in the industry.”
February 16, 2010 Grand Rapids News
Less than a month after a federal judge rejected James and Glenna Chandler's bid
to punish the security company that employed five men convicted of killing their
daughter in Holland in 1979, the couple has filed an appeal, pushing their case
forward. Janet Chandler's father filed the appeal Tuesday with the U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Sixth District in Cincinnati, records show. The Chandlers have
claimed Wackenhut Corp. -- which employed five of the six people convicted of
Janet Chandler's slaying -- did not conduct sufficient employee background
checks, or properly supervise their workers. They also contended Wackenhut
helped hide the employees' involvement in the murder, which took nearly three
decades to solve. The family was seeking cash damages for the mental pain and
suffering inflicted by the death of Janet, a 22-year-old Hope College student.
On Jan. 19, U.S. District Judge Janet Neff dismissed the Chandlers' claims
against the Florida security firm, which hired guards during a strike at a
Holland area plant. Neff said the allegations were filed after a three-year
statute of limitations.
February 16, 2010 Miami-Herald
Heading to an end: the long-running dispute between Miami-Dade County,
Wackenhut Corp. and a whistleblower named Michelle Trimble over millions in
alleged overbillings for phantom workers at Metrorail. On Thursday county
commissioners are scheduled to vote on a proposed settlement in which all
parties would drop their competing lawsuits, Wackenhut would pay $7.5 million,
and Miami-Dade would end its bid to keep the private security firm from doing
business with the county. It would promise not to use the facts of this case
against Wackenhut on current or future contracts. Out of the $7.5 million
Wackenhut has agreed pay, $3 million would go to the county, $1.25 million to
Trimble and $3.25 million to her attorneys, led by plaintiffs lawyer Mark Vieth
and the Miami firm Josephs Jack. The proposed settlement comes nearly a year
after a final audit by Miami-Dade County concluded that taxpayers were
overbilled by Wackenhut -- which provided security at the county's Metrorail
stops for two decades -- by $3.3 million to $5.8 million. In the proposed
settlement, the county also agreed to clarify its final audit by Miami-Dade's
chief auditor Cathy Jackson, saying her comments ``should not be construed to
mean that the principals or management of Wackenhut engaged in fraud.'' In a
memo to commissioners, County Manager George Burgess defended the proposed
settlement, writing that the deal avoids the risks associated with trial and
required ``all parties to make some compromises.'' Drew Levine, Wackenhut's
president, declined to comment. Trimble could not be reached for comment. Vieth,
who has been leading the civil case against Wackenhut since August 2005, did not
return calls. Michael Josephs of the Josephs Jack firm declined to comment. If
approved, the settlement will end a dispute that's been part of a broader
history of waste and mismanagement underscoring the county's stewardship of the
transit system. In this case, the county has been criticized for responding
slowly to allegations that taxpayers were paying for guards who did not show up
at Metrorail stops. In August 2005 the whistleblower lawsuit against Wackenhut
was filed alleging phony billing practices; the suit is called a Qui Tam action,
in which a private citizen sues on behalf of the government. Trimble worked as a
guard at the county's Juvenile Services Department, where Wackenhut also
previously provided security services. The county balked at participating in the
case, instead ordering its own audit that was not finished until 2008. The
inquiry found that Wackenhut billed the county for service not rendered. It
wasn't until a year later, in April 2009, that a final audit was issued -- again
concluding taxpayers were bilked. County manager Burgess had said he would
replace Wackenhut once its contract expired in November and pledged to bar the
firm from doing business with the county in the future. Burgess also said the
county would cooperate with the Qui Tam lawsuit. At the time, plaintiff attorney
Vieth said the ``evidence of overbilling has been overwhelming and existing for
four years.'' For its part, Wackenhut denied wrongdoing and subsequently filed a
$20 million suit against the county, saying the future damages it will suffer
``as result of this unfair and malicious taint'' on the firm's reputation ``are
incalculable.'' Last month -- on the eve of trial in the whistleblower case --
the proposed settlement was reached, according to Burgess' memo.
February 11, 2010 KATU News
In a Seattle bus tunnel a 15-year-old girl was viciously attacked while
security guards did nothing but call 9-1-1. The incident, in addition to
sparking outrage, has many asking whether security guards in Portland are
allowed to step in. Disbelief and disgust was the reaction by people who were
shown surveillance footage of a girl being repeatedly kicked in the head by
another girl while private security guards stood by at arm’s length and did
nothing but call 9-1-1. “I know the transit isn’t exactly the same over there
(Seattle), but I know it’s still good and that’s, that’s horrible,” said one man
after watching the video at a MAX station. “Somebody’s getting hurt, I mean you
don’t want them to get hurt, I don’t know, like, do something,” said another man
at a MAX station. TriMet and its private security contractor Wackenhut, said if
one of their guard’s is near a fight, they won’t just stand back and dial 9-1-1.
Wackenhut project manager, Maj. Ellis Bremer, said there’s no question employees
can and will get directly involved to stop fights. “We will not stand by,” he
said. “We are here to protect the employees and assist the employees of TriMet
and in so far as the ridership goes, of course, protect the ridership and inform
the ridership.” The state only requires eight hours of classroom work to get a
license to be a private security guard, but Wackenhut said it requires its
people to go through an initial minimum of 80 hours and then a 16-hour refresher
course every year. Most riders said they believe security should mean more than
just dialing 9-1-1. Transit officers in Seattle say they are reconsidering the
limits put on their private security guards.
December 8, 2009 Reuters
The State Department will not renew the contract of a security company
embroiled in a scandal involving the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, where guards were
accused of drunken conduct and sexual hazing. U.S. State Department spokesman
Mark Toner said on Tuesday Virginia-based ArmorGroup would not have its contract
renewed when it expires in June, although it will receive a six-month extension
to allow the contract to be put up for new bids. Toner said officials had
reviewed the contract and "concurred that the next option year should not be
exercised and that work begin immediately to compete a new contract." He said
the review included both recent misconduct allegations against ArmorGroup
personnel and the company's "history of contract compliance deficiencies." This
week a report by the non-partisan Government Accounting Office identified a
number of shortcomings in the State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security
including staffing shortage and increased reliance on contractors in high-risk
posts. The Kabul embassy scandal broke in September, when a watchdog group
accused ArmorGroup of jeopardizing security at the embassy by understaffing the
facility and ignoring lewd, drunken conduct and sexual hazing by some guards --
and provided graphic photos as evidence. ArmorGroup North America, now owned by
Florida-based Wackenhut Services, was also hit by a federal whistle-blower
lawsuit that said it had ignored brothel visits by guards and other misconduct
because of what a lawyer said was a "myopic preoccupation with profit" in its
five-year, $187 million contract with the State Department. State Department
officials said the safety of embassy staff was never in jeopardy. But they
subsequently said 12 embassy guards had been removed or resigned, ArmorGroup's
entire senior Kabul management replaced and alcohol banned at the group's camp.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton ordered a thorough review of how contractors
are used. The GAO report noted that worldwide, the U.S. diplomatic security
budget had grown to $1.8 billion in 2008 from just $200 million in 1998, when
truck bomb attacks on U.S. Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania killed more than 300
people including 12 Americans. The bureau's workforce has also doubled over the
same period but is failing to keep pace with rising security threats including
those faced in Iraq and Afghanistan, it said. "Staffing shortages in domestic
offices and other operational challenges -- such as inadequate facilities,
language deficiencies, experience gaps, and balancing security needs with
State's diplomatic mission -- further tax its ability to implement all of its
missions," the report said. The report urged the State Department to develop a
strategic plan to directly address the rising demands of diplomatic security
including increased staffing.
November 24, 2009 The Guardian
The brutal truth of child detention 2,000 asylum seekers' kids a year
are locked up, and the only beneficiaries seem to be firms running centres like Yarl's Wood A report by the novelist Clare Sambrook of End
Child Detention Now, which campaigns against the detention of 2,000
asylum seekers' children every year, asks the very reasonable question:
who does this expensive incarceration benefit? Clearly not the children
who, according to every study ever written on this issue, suffer acutely
from being taken from their homes on the orders of the UK Border Agency
and placed in a confined space for an indeterminate period. Many argue
that society benefits because it is protected from the asylum seekers
and their families. Sambrook wonders how that can be when there is no
evidence that asylum seekers are likely to abscond. So who benefits?
Clearly the private companies that run so much of this operation have a
lot to gain. G4S, the company that operates Tinlsey House, one of three
detention centres where last month 10-year-old Adeoti Ogunsola tried to
strangle herself after being forcibly redetained, recently reported
rising profits and growth in government business which had offset
weakness in commercial sectors. As Sambrook reports: "Last year G4S
handed chief executive Nick Buckles a £1.4m pay package. That's £3,835
every day. He owns £4m in G4S shares, tipped by the Daily Telegraph
recently as, 'a solid buy for these uncertain times'." Someone else who
may reasonably be said to benefit from this policy is Christopher Hyman,
the chief executive of Serco, who also earns in the region of £3,000 a
day. His company runs the notorious Yarl's Wood detention centre where
children have been detained far beyond the 28-day with charge maximum
allowed for terror suspects. "Traumatised child inmates, who must carry
ID cards at all times, refer to Yarl's Wood as 'prison' and 'the camp',"
says Sambrook. Among the indirect beneficiaries she also identifies John
Reid, the former home secretary, who is paid £50,000 a year as a
consultant to G4S for, among other things, hosting government and
security industry breakfasts. Meanwhile children are suffering. The
Lorek report in the peer review journal Child Abuse and Neglect says
detained children experience "increased fear due to being suddenly
placed in a facility resembling a prison … the abrupt loss of home,
school friends and all that was familiar to them". Some exhibit "sexualised
behaviour". Older children are so stressed they wet their bed and soil
their pants. Who benefits from this expensive and harsh policy? Sambrook
answers her own questions with this – " some extremely wealthy
grownups".
November 23, 2009 Wall Street Journal
G4S PLC (GFS.LN), an international security solutions group, said Monday it
Monday it has bought Champions of the West, Inc--trading as All Star
International from the Junge Revocable Trust and John P. Junge individually, by
its U.S. Government Services business, Wackenhut Services, Inc. for $59.9
million in cash, on an enterprise value basis.
November 6, 2009 West Australia Today
The ongoing contract with a private prison transport company
responsible for the death of an Aboriginal elder in January last year
has sparked legal retaliation. The Deaths in Custody Watch Committee has
told radio 6PR that it was seeking independent legal advice to appeal
the decision to keep the $25million a year contract between the State
Government and contractor G4S. The State Coroner found that the company
was responsible for the death of 46-year-old Mr Ward, who had been
arrested for drink driving and was being transported 350kms to a
Kalgoorlie Court when he suffered heat stroke from the 50C heat inside
the unairconditioned truck. "It is outrageous and unimaginable that they
[G4S] could continue their contract. They have been responsible for six
deaths in Australia in less than nine years," committee spokesman Mark
Newhouse said. He said the company, under its current terms, could still
be responsible for two more deaths in custody and not have its contract
terminated before it expired in 2011. "What is even more concerning is
that in one incident, if there are four to five deaths, that is not
considered a breach of contract, which is outrageous," he said. The
group is also planning on mounting a public campaign to improve proper
approvals for public contracts and improving the monitoring of those
being transported while in custody. Mr Newhouse said there had been no
evidence from the company that any improvements had been made. G4S have
refused to comment on the grounds that it was a confidential contract.
The Attorney General Christian Porter was also unavailable for comment.
October 11, 2009 Weekly Standard
There seems no end to contractor abuse scandals in countries fighting terrorism
or undergoing "nation-building." The latest to be reported in the media involves
ArmorGroup North America, a private security firm guarding the American
embassies in Iraq and Afghanistan. It began in Baghdad on August 9, when an
ArmorGroup employee shot two of his colleagues dead. The victims were Darren
Hoare, 37, an Australian, and Paul McGuigan, 37, a Briton and ArmorGroup
executive. The alleged killer, Daniel Fitzsimons, 33, is also British.
ArmorGroup North America is owned by Wackenhut Services, Inc., a Florida-based
company, which is a division, in turn, of a Danish enterprise, G4S, that
advertises itself as the world's largest security company. The shootings
reportedly occurred late at night, inside the ArmorGroup compound in Baghdad's
international area known as the Green Zone. Fitzsimons, according to a Baghdad
source who declined to be named, is said to have shot his coworkers because they
claimed he was homosexual. After killing them, he shot an Iraqi, Arkhan Mahdi,
in the leg, then was arrested by Iraqi police (who now patrol the Green Zone).
Fitzsimons faces a possible death sentence. He will be the first foreigner
employed in Iraq since the beginning of the 2003 intervention to be held to
account under Iraqi law. Fitzsimons says he cannot remember the incident.
According to the London Sunday Times, Fitzsimons was seen on an earlier occasion
injecting Valium and morphine into his leg while already drunk. Another trail of
misconduct has led to an uproar in Kabul, where 16 U.S. embassy guards provided
by ArmorGroup were fired in early September for alleged drunkenness and for
forcing those under their control to engage in deviant and humiliating behavior.
U.S. press coverage of the Fitzsimons case has been minimal, and even the
contractors' misbehavior in Kabul, although documented by video, has mostly been
handled with discretion by the print media. The New York Times mentioned "lurid
details" and "lewd conduct" at weekly parties hosted by embassy guards. The
Kabul carousing was disclosed when the Project on Government Oversight (POGO)
released a report on September 1. More information emerged in a suit filed
September 9 by James Gordon, a New Zealander and former operations director of
ArmorGroup North America. Gordon says he is a "whistle-blower," forced out of
his job after warning company executives and the U.S. Department of State about
the situation at the embassy. According to the New York Times, the POGO report
stated that victims of "deviant hazing" included Afghans, whose conservative
Muslim culture left them especially repelled by such behavior; those who refused
to submit were dismissed from their jobs. The report described a " 'Lord of the
Flies' environment." Fitzsimons, the accused Baghdad shooter, has been treated
in the British media as a case of post-traumatic stress disorder caused by his
prior military service in Iraq and the Balkans. But it would be a mistake to
blame such dissolution on the stress of war alone. The Green Zone syndrome of
alienation from the local population, as chronicled by critics of the Iraq war,
is a ubiquitous feature of life among foreign administrators in conflict and
post-conflict areas across the globe. Sex trafficking and corruption of locals
have become prominent wherever operations are conducted by transnational
bureaucracies like the United Nations and the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) along with the attendant ranks of nongovernmental
organizations and private contractors. I have observed similar patterns in the
Balkans for a decade.
September 30, 2009 ABC
The West Australian Government has officially responded to the
coroner's findings in the case of Mr Ward, who died of heatstroke in a
prisoner transport vehicle. The coroner said the Aboriginal elder's
death in searing desert heat was a disgrace, as the van was "not fit for
humans". But the Government has decided not terminate the contract of
the private company which transported Mr Ward. The Government says it
supports all of the coroner's recommendations - some of which have
already been acted on. But the full response has come three months after
the coroner handed down his findings, and 20 months since the tragedy
occurred. The Government agrees there should be more training and
monitoring of staff, and there should not be transportation of prisoners
over long distances. But the Attorney-General Christian Porter says the
contract with private operators G4S is likely to continue. Mr Porter has
suggested the company may have to pay a penalty. "The penalties that
you've spoken of, for a death for instance, I understand are $100,000
which seems to me to be ridiculous in the scope of what occurred here,"
he said. "But again, the question about termination is very
unfortunately a question about the legality of being able to terminate
under the terms of the present contract." The coroner called for the
prisoner transport fleet to be completely replaced. This will not happen
until the end of next year. Mr Porter says responsibility for
transporting prisoners could be brought back to the public sector. "The
final decision as to whether or not this service will be public or
private has not yet been made but I can say that if a determination is
made to keep this service in the private sector, the contract that
governs the process will be a completely different type of contract to
the one that presently exists," he said. The Deaths In Custody Watch
Committee says Group 4 and GSL staff have contributed to the deaths of
six people in Australia. The committee's Marc Newhouse says the contract
should have been terminated. "We're completely outraged that the
contract with G4S - he hasn't announced the termination of it, it has to
be terminated," he said. "They've been subject to critical reports by
the Australian Human Rights Commission. This company is not fit to
operate in this country and they should be terminated." Noongar elder
Ben Taylor says he believes racism in the system is causing Aboriginal
people to suffer. "There's a lotta racism there and the only ones who're
gonna suffer are my people, Aboriginal people," he said. "This is got to
go wider, and I'm on the Watch Committee with Marc and we're going to
keep hanging on here because there's more lives that are going to be
taken, and that's going to be blackfellas, Aboriginal people, my people,
and that's the full stop." Mr Newhouse says the committee had also
called for a speedier response in the wake of a death in custody. "That
the Coroner's Act is amended in line with the Royal Commission into
Aboriginal Deaths in Custody recommendations, that a system of mandatory
reporting be put in place so that government and other relevant bodies
have to report within a certain time frame," he said. "The point of it
is to save lives and to prevent lives being lost." But Mr Porter says
the Labor state government should have ended the contract with the
company. But the Opposition Leader Eric Ripper says there were other
considerations. "You can't just terminate a contract without there being
financial consequences for taxpayers and the government does have a
responsibility to both protect prisoners and the interests of
taxpayers," he said. "That's why this matter needs careful examination
rather than a kneejerk reaction."
September 18, 2009 AP
A top executive of the private security contractor hired to protect the U.S.
Embassy in Afghanistan was informed in July 2008 of alleged illegal and immoral
conduct by guards, attorneys for a whistleblower suing the company said Friday.
The claim contradicts the sworn testimony of Samuel Brinkley, a vice president
for Wackenhut Services, the owner of ArmorGroup North America. Brinkley told the
Commission on Wartime Contracting under oath on Monday that he and other
corporate officials outside of Afghanistan didn't know until a few weeks ago of
problems that reportedly included lurid parties and ArmorGroup employees
frequenting brothels in Kabul. But in a 10-page letter to the commission, the
attorneys say their client, James Gordon, told Brinkley during a meeting on July
15, 2008, of alleged guard misconduct. The meeting took place in Brinkley's
office in Arlington, Va., Gordon said in a separate e-mail through the lawyers.
Gordon was ArmorGroup's director of operations until February 2008. He says he
was forced out of the job after trying to get the company to fix a long list of
shortcomings with the $189 million embassy security contract that the State
Department awarded ArmorGroup in March 2007. He filed a lawsuit earlier this
month in federal court claiming the company retaliated against him for telling
the department about the deficiencies. Brinkley and Wackenhut did not
immediately respond to a request for comment. In a previous statement on the
lawsuit, a Wackenhut spokeswoman called Gordon's claims baseless and said he
voluntarily resigned from the company. Clark Irwin, a spokesman for the wartime
contracting commission, said the congressionally mandated panel is reviewing the
letter. At the commission's Sept. 14 hearing on ArmorGroup's performance,
Brinkley portrayed himself and other company executives as being blindsided by
the misconduct of a small number of employees. "I am not here to defend the
indefensible," Brinkley said. "Certain of our personnel behaved very badly."
During a series of heated exchanges, commissioners pressed Brinkley to explain
why he didn't tell the State Department of reports that guards were behaving
inappropriately, potentially putting security of a key U.S. diplomatic outpost
at risk. Brinkley said ArmorGroup managers in Afghanistan only told him about an
Aug. 11 incident involving nine employees who got drunk at a bar near their
living quarters. Those workers were counseled by the on-site manager and a
temporary ban on alcohol was imposed. He said the State Department was informed
of this incident on Aug. 26. Brinkley said he wasn't aware of the scope and
duration of the misconduct until Sept. 1 when a watchdog group released a report
with photos showing guards and supervisors in various stages of nudity at
parties flowing with alcohol. The watchdog group, the Project on Government
Oversight in Washington, also said guards were subjected to abuse and hazing by
supervisors who created a hostile work environment. The letter from Gordon's
attorneys says they are concerned Brinkley's testimony did not provide the
commission with a "full and accurate understanding of many of the events in
question."
September 14, 2009 Government Executive
The State Department should terminate ArmorGroup North America's contract for
security services at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, witnesses and panelists said
during a Commission on Wartime Contracting hearing on Monday. The recent
photographs and report from the Project on Government Oversight detailing
alleged lewd, drunken behavior by guards at the embassy just describe the latest
and most egregious violation by ArmorGroup, witnesses told the panel. State
Department Undersecretary of Management Patrick Kennedy testified that the
contract has required "extensive oversight and management." Since awarding the
contract to ArmorGroup on March 12, 2007, State has issued seven deficiency
notices addressing 25 deficiencies, one cure notice and one show-cause notice.
Each notice demanded separate correction action plans to resolve contractual
issues and several involved serious allegations, including that the contractor
had deceived the government in its contract proposal. Despite these problems,
State has not terminated the contract with ArmorGroup and has, in fact,
exercised an extension of the contract period. State officials said they are
awaiting the results of an ongoing investigation into the contractor's conduct
at the embassy. Commissioner Clark Kent Ervin pressed Kennedy to pledge State
would terminate the contract if the probe validates the allegations made against
the contract employees. While Kennedy was hesitant to speculate on a
hypothetical situation, he said he could imagine an outcome of the investigation
that would lead the agency to terminate the contract. "We're seeing a serious
case being made for termination," he said. William Moser, deputy assistant
secretary of State for logistics management, told the commission a public
hearing was not the proper forum to talk about future contract actions.
Regardless, he said the department is discussing potential alternatives and
approaching the reevaluation of the contract "with a great deal of seriousness."
Danielle Brian, executive director of POGO, said the organization's
investigation shows State officials were notified of serious issues relating to
the ArmorGroup contract repeatedly, and took limited action. "For the two years
of this contract, State's response to whistleblowers' sustained complaints and
to its own finding of severe noncompliance consisted mainly of written
reprimands and the renewal of ArmorGroup's contract," Brian said. "Simply
documenting a problem or even levying a fine is not effective oversight when
those same problems continue to occur." Brian said State has been "stubbornly
defensive" in not recognizing its own failures, and how those failures have
caused misconduct and potential lapses in security. While POGO strongly believes
the contract should be canceled and ArmorGroup -- or its parent company,
Wackenhut -- should be debarred from doing business with the government, that
will not prevent future problems, Brian said. To ensure proper conduct by
contractors overseas, State must shorten the rotations of its regional security
officers, perform more frequent audits and independent verification of
contractor reports of compliance, and prioritize accountability, she said. "This
cultural shift will be aided by canceling contracts when the contractor
consistently underperforms -- which will have the added benefit of acting as a
deterrent to future contractors -- and by disciplining the State Department
officials who are responsible for the failed oversight of the ArmorGroup
contract," Brian said. Commissioner Linda Gustitus said State already lost
authority with industry by not terminating its contract with Blackwater
Worldwide in the wake of the Nissor Square shooting incident in Iraq. "That
helped to send a message to other contractors that you can do a lot and not have
you contract terminated," Gustitus said. Several commissioners joined Brian in
urging Kennedy to hold accountable the State employees responsible for managing
Armor Group by firing them, withholding bonuses or taking some other
disciplinary action.
September 14, 2009 Wayne Madsen Report
At a September 10 press conference at the National Press Club in Washington,
two former managers for ArmorGroup North America (AGNA), headquartered in
McLean, Virginia and a subsidiary of ArmorGroup International (AGI), revealed a
litany of contract fraud and abuse charges against AGNA and AGI and provided
further details of sexual deviancy among AGNA security guards in Kabul tasked
with protecting the U.S. embassy. ArmorGroup is now owned by Wackenhut Services,
Inc., headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. The two former employees are
suing AGNA, AGI, Wackenhut, and Corporation Service Company for wrongful
termination, false claims, and conspiracy. John Gorman, a retired Marine Corps
veteran who was the camp manager at the security guard force’s Camp Sullivan,
blew the whistle on contract non-performance, security pitfalls, and sexual
deviancy, and was placed under virtual house arrest in June 2007 by AGNA’s top
manager in Kabul, Michael O’Connell, and flown out of the country. Gorman was
terminated and confined for some 24 hours, along with two other AGNA managers,
James Sauer, a retired Marine sergeant major and Pete Martino, a retired Marine
colonel, who filed complaints to both AGNA and the Regional Security Office (RSO)
for the U.S. embassy in Kabul, also Marine Corps veterans. Because they told the
RSO they feared for their personal safety after bringing the charges against
AGNA, he offered them the security of his apartment on the embassy compound,
which they turned down only to later have their cell phones and weapons
confiscated by AGNA and being confined before their flight out of the country.
Gorman said no one at AGNA “ever mentioned or indicated a concern for the actual
security at the embassy -- the greatest and only concerns were the profit margin
and the bottom line.” Gorman said the project manager for the security contract,
Sauer, a man with 35 years of experience as a 30-year career Marine with private
security contractor experience in Iraq and Afghanistan, was “ignored, second
guessed, and rejected.” Sauer had vehemently objected to allowing security
personnel to be deployed to Kabul who had engaged in “lewd and deviant behavior”
during their subcontractor training in Texas. After Gorman, Sauer, and Martino
made their complaints known to McConnell, the corporate executive replied that
ArmorGroup was a publicly traded company and could, therefore, not hire more
people “because he had a responsibility to the shareholders.” The effect was the
hiring of clearly unqualified personnel for the security guard force. Gorman
said that there were people hired as guards who had “no DD214s, driver’s
licenses, passports,” including one person who had been fired from a previous
security project for pulling a pistol on another employee while drunk. AGNA,
according to Gorman, covered up the security contract failures because the firm
was “to assume the $187 million a year security contract for the American
embassy in Kabul in less than two weeks and they were bidding on the more
lucrative $500 million contract for the U.S. embassy in Baghdad. James Gordon, a
New Zealand citizen and New Zealand Army veteran who is married to an American,
worked for ArmorGroup Iraq as the operations manager, a subsidiary of AGI, also
spoke about corporate malfeasance involving AGNA. He later became the business
development director for AGNA headquarters in McLean. In 2007, Gordon took over
as operations director for the Kabul embassy security contract and attempted to
bring the contract into compliance with State Department requirements.
Eventually, Gordon was forced out of the company because instead of correcting
contract violations the firm’s only goal was to “maximize profits.” Gordon said
among AGNA security personnel were unqualified personnel, some of whom had
serious criminal records. Some guard recruits had engaged in “disgusting
behavior” during their initial training at AGI’s subsidiary’s training facility,
International Training Inc. (ITI) of Pearsall, Texas. Sauer, Martino, and Gorman
had received reports that some of the AGNA recruits, while undergoing
pre-deployment in Texas, had engaged in “lewd, aberrant, and sexually deviant
behavior, including sexual hazing, urination on one another and equipment,
bullying, ‘mooning,’” exposing themselves, excessive drinking, and other conduct
making themselves unfit for service on the contract. The AGNA employees who were
later forced out of the company attempted to ensure that the trainees in Texas
never arrived in Kabul. Several email exchanges (“e-pong”) show they tried to
block the sexual deviants from duty in Kabul. AGNA also misrepresented ethnic
Nepalese Gurkha farmers hired as security guards for the Kabul embassy job as
Gurkha military veterans of the British and Indian armies. In fact. the Gurkha
farmers hired from Nepal and northern India were not proficient in English as
required under the State Department contract. In fact, some could speak no
English. The language test had never been administered to the Gurkha recruits.
When some Gurkha guards walked off their jobs in May 2007 because of poor wages
and treatment, Carol Ruart, AGI’s human resources director in London, ordered
AGNA management in Kabul to “lock [the Gurkhas] in their rooms until they agree
to work for less.” Gordon also stated that AGNA never invested in secure
vehicles to transport embassy guards between the embassy and other locations.
AGNA used broken down vehicles called “white coffins.” After the State
Department released funds to AGNA to buy secure vehicles, the firm never bought
the vehicles but transferred the money to AGI in London. AGNA also hired a
“rogue” South African program manager for the embassy contract in Kabul,
according to Gordon. DuPlessis replaced Sauer. Jimmy Lemmon replaced Martino as
deputy program manager. During the tenure of the South African, Nick duPlessis,
ammunition went missing from Camp Sullivan where the guards were bivouacked and
illegal weapons were stored at the facility. Moreover, duPlessis did not possess
a security clearance to receive classified briefings, a requirement for the
program manager position. In addition, Gordon stated that the AGNA logistics
manager, Sean Garcia, used contract funds to purchase counterfeit North Face and
Altama jackets and boots for the security guards from his wife’s company in
Lebanon, Trends General Trading and Marketing LLC of Beirut. Gordon said, “the
cheap knock-offs could never keep the men warm during the cold winters in
Afghanistan.” After Gordon notified the State Department about the contract
breach, the order to remove him was ignored and the State Department continues
to own sub-par counterfeit material. Gordon sent an email dated September 3,
2007 to duPlessis and his staff in Kabul. Gordon also said that the AGNA armorer
in Kabul, responsible for maintaining all the weapons, had to be “forcibly
removed” from a brothel in Kabul. Many of the prostitutes working in Kabul,
according to Gordon, are young Chinese girls who were taken against their will
to Kabul for sexual exploitation. When Gordon ordered the armorer’s immediate
termination, he discovered that the AGNA medic, Neville Montefiore, and
duPlessis, the program manager, had also frequented the brothels with the
armorer. Gordon also discovered that there had been an outbreak of
sexually-transmitted diseases among the AGNA guards in 2007 and this was never
reported to the State Department as required by the contract. Prostitutes also
frequently visited Camp Sullivan. Gordon also discovered that the guard force
routinely visited brothels in Kabul and Montefiore’s replacement discovered the
improper storage of regulated narcotics at Camp Sullivan’s medical facility,
including morphine. “You can rest assured that there is no hiding of information
from the DoS [Department of State]. Anyone who thinks that they can get away
with this will probably end up in a Federal Penitentiary. It is our duty to
report on all aspects of the contract performance and we are required to be
transparent and honest in our dealings. Personally I wouldn’t accept anything
else.” Gordon’s plans to visit Kabul to conduct an investigation were
immediately shut down by ArmorGroup’s parent office in London. Gordon said it is
contrary to U.S. law for a foreign company to direct or influence any activities
on a classified contract. Moreover, the British parent conducted their own
investigation, which resulted in a three-page whitewash. Gordon was denied
access to all information about AGI London’s investigation. After the whitewash,
Gordon received a report that an AGNA trainee wanted to be hired on as a
security guard at the embassy in Kabul because he knew someone “who owned
prostitutes there.” The trainee boasted that he could purchase a girl for
$20,000 and earn a handsome profit each month. The trainee, according to Gordon,
had previously worked in Kabul under duPlessis. Neither AGNA nor the State
Department conducted a follow-up investigation of the violations of the U.S.
Trafficking in Victims Protection Act by AGNA employees. AGNA responded to
Gordon’s warnings by blaming him for all the contract’s failures and he was
forced to leave the firm on February 29, 2008. After Wackenhut Services Inc.
bought ArmorGroup, after Gordon left the company, he met with Sam Brinkley, the
vice president of Wackenhut, to discuss the contract problems. Brinkley promised
to remove duPlessis and investigate all the charges of misconduct. On June 10,
2009, Gordon was present during hearings held by Senator Claire McCaskill
(D-MO). Gordon said that Brinkley and the State Department testified to
McCaskill’s subcommittee on contracting oversight that AGNA was “fully
compliant” on the security contract for the embassy in Kabul. Brinkley told the
subcommittee that he “was proud” of the way the company had been managing the
embassy security contract. Gordon said the situation at Camp Sullivan had
worsened and the U.S. Embassy was facing a grave security threat. McCaskill and
ranking Republican member Susan Collins (R-ME) never heard testimony from any of
the whistleblowers on AGNA’s poor security record in Kabul. The only witnesses
heard were Brinkley and William Moser, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
for Logistics Management. Brinkley, in addition to the U.S. Embassy in Kabul,
has responsibility for the security contract for the U.S. Naval Support Activity
in Bahrain, which, according to ex-AGNA sources, may be using untrained Gurkha
farmers from the Indian subcontinent as crack veterans of the British and Indian
armies. The Gorman/Gordon lawsuit states that on October 10, 2007, the AGNA
security force in Kabul was involved in a number of serious incidents,
including: detaining a group of Afghan civilians and involuntarily transporting
them to the U.S. embassy; verbally and physically engaging in an altercation
with Afghan Ministry of Interior policemen and handcuffing the policemen;
confronting an Afghan general and several Ministry of Interior policemen;
refusing an order from the embassy RSO to withdraw from a checkpoint to defuse a
potentially explosive situation. The statements of the two ex-AGNA employees
reveal a culture of depravity and unprofessional behavior that Gordon stated
still exists to this very day in Kabul.
September 14, 2009 AP
A member of a federal commission investigating wartime spending said Monday
that photos showing private security guards in various stages of nudity at
drunken parties may be as damaging to U.S. interests in Afghanistan as images of
detainee mistreatment at Abu Ghraib were in Iraq. Dov Zakheim, a former Pentagon
comptroller, made the comment at a hearing Monday held by the Commission on
Wartime Contracting on allegations of lewd behavior and sexual misconduct by
employees of ArmorGroup North America, the company hired to protect the U.S.
Embassy in Kabul. Zakheim said the photos are circulating heavily on the
Internet and give Muslims in Afghanistan a negative image of the United States.
Patrick Kennedy, the State Department's management chief, acknowledged the
department should have been paying closer attention to the activities of the
ArmorGroup guards at their living quarters near the embassy. The private
security contractor hired to protect the embassy said Monday it erred by not
immediately telling the State Department about an alcohol-related incident
involving its guards that proved far more serious than company officials first
believed. "I am not here to defend the indefensible," said Samuel Brinkley, vice
president of Wackenhut Services, the company that owns the contractor,
ArmorGroup North America. A manager for ArmorGroup counseled nine guards after
they got drunk at a bar near their living quarters in Kabul on August 10. But
after photos surfaced showing the guards had been at a party where ArmorGroup
employees engaged in lewd and inappropriate behavior, they realized they made a
mistake by not alerting U.S. officials. Photos showed guards and supervisors in
various stages of nudity at parties flowing with alcohol. Brinkley said the
manager's response, which included a temporary ban on alcohol, seemed adequate
at the time. "In retrospect, we were wrong in not notifying the State
Department," Brinkley said in testimony before the independent Commission on
Wartime Contracting. Kennedy, under secretary of state for management, told the
commission the State Department is very concerned about ArmorGroup's delays in
reporting its knowledge of any misconduct by its employees. The State Department
has been sharply criticized for its management and oversight of the security
contract at one of the country's most important diplomatic outposts. In addition
to the allegations of misconduct, other problems have included a shortage of
guards and inferior equipment. As the department's top management officer,
Kennedy said he takes full responsibility for having failed to prevent the
problems that reportedly ranged from out-of-control parties to Armor Group
supervisors frequenting brothels in Kabul. The State Department has launched an
investigation into ArmorGroup's handling of the $189 million contract embassy
security contract. Kennedy told the commission that the misconduct "dishonored"
the State Department in Afghanistan, where "the success of U.S. objectives
depends on the cultural sensitivity of all mission personnel, including
employees under contract." But he and other State Department officials said no
decision will be made on whether to terminate the contract with ArmorGroup until
the investigation is complete. Members of the commission pressed Kennedy to be
more aggressive, saying the evidence already available is enough to warrant
firing ArmorGroup, which was awarded the contract to protect the embassy in
March 2007. "To me, it's just totally out of control and it's been going on for
a long time," said Michael Thibault, co-chairman of the commission. Commissioner
Clark Ervin asked Kennedy to pledge to terminate the contract if the
investigation proves all the allegations prove to be true. Kennedy refused to
commit, saying the inquiry needs to run its course. However, Kennedy added, "We
are seeing a very, very serious case being made for termination."
September 13, 2009 Washington Post
In 2005, the State Department hired a Northern Virginia company to provide
security for the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan. Diplomats quickly became concerned
about whether the new guards, who barely spoke English, could protect such a
sensitive site. "They had serious problems," recalled Ronald E. Neumann, who was
ambassador at the time. The department then brought in another security
contractor, ArmorGroup North America. But the difficulties didn't cease. In
recent days, evidence of ArmorGroup's failings has burst into public view --
photos depicting its guards in semi-naked hazing rituals and official documents
showing persistent staff shortages. Harold W. Geisel, the acting inspector
general of the State Department, told Congress last week that his investigators
are checking for possible criminal conduct by ArmorGroup, and a congressional
hearing is scheduled for Monday. Lawmakers and watchdog groups are questioning
how the department could have continued to employ a company that, in addition to
tolerating bullying and understaffing, failed to ensure that its guards had
proper security clearances and sufficient equipment -- or that they spoke
English. The criticism is particularly intense because the State Department had
promised to improve oversight after a 2007 shooting incident in Iraq involving
bodyguards from security contractor Blackwater that left 17 Iraqi civilians
dead. "State's management of these contracts has been self-evidentially
abysmal," said Peter W. Singer, an expert on government contracting at the
Brookings Institution. ArmorGroup's efforts to guard the Kabul embassy were
troubled from the start, according to congressional hearings, internal State
Department documents and interviews. The McLean-based company submitted "an
unreasonably low price" in 2007 for the contract, said Samuel Brinkley, an
official with Wackenhut Services, the firm's parent company, at a congressional
hearing in June. Former ArmorGroup supervisors have said in interviews that the
company slashed guard staffing so it could squeak out a profit. State Department
officials have expressed outrage about the lewd behavior shown in the photos.
Still, they defend their selection of ArmorGroup, saying they are legally
required to award such contracts to the lowest qualified bidder and noting that
ArmorGroup was well-regarded. They also insist that the embassy was never
endangered by the guard problems -- even though internal department documents
say it was. "The fact you find something is wrong means something is wrong. But
you find it," the department's undersecretary for management, Patrick F.
Kennedy, said in an interview. He emphasized that many of the guards' failings
emerged in documents written by department officials. "There was oversight
present," he said. The troubles at the Kabul embassy raise questions about how
authorities will manage what is expected to be a surge in the number of contract
guards at U.S. facilities in Iraq as the American military presence declines.
The scandal has also given new impetus to a debate over whether too many
government wartime jobs are being outsourced. "The State Department should
consider whether the security for an embassy in a combat zone is an inherently
governmental function, and therefore not subject to contracting out," Danielle
Brian, executive director of the Project on Government Oversight, wrote to
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton this month. Brian's group released the
photos of what it called near-weekly sessions of hazing and sexual humiliation
of ArmorGroup guards at their camp. The State Department has for years used
local contract guards to secure the perimeters of its embassies, while generally
keeping a modest Marine contingent for interior access. But in Iraq and
Afghanistan, the department decided not to use local guards because of vetting
concerns, officials say. Instead, as the military withdrew forces from around
those embassies in recent years, the department turned to contractors such as
ArmorGroup. But the department, which suffers from a shortage of contracting
staff, has had a rocky history of managing such guard contracts. Each of its
three contracts in Kabul has come under fire. The first was awarded to
McLean-based Global Strategies, to replace a Marine combat force withdrawing
from the U.S. Embassy in March 2005. The department justified the
$6-million-a-month sole-source contract by saying it had received late
notification of the Marines' departure. But the inspector general found that the
Defense Department had given six months' official notice, and scolded the State
Department for poor planning. By July 2005, the State Department had signed a
contract with MVM of Ashburn, cutting its guard costs to less than $2 million a
month, according to the inspector general's report. But MVM could not provide
enough guards, partly because it was paying much less than its predecessor,
according to Neumann. And, he said, the guards spoke so little English that they
could not understand instructions. "We went back to the State Department and
said, 'These people are unacceptable,' " Neumann said. State canceled MVM's
contract and kept on the Global guards temporarily. MVM's chief executive, Dario
O. Marquez, did not return a call seeking comment but told the Wall Street
Journal last year that the State Department did not give him enough time to fix
the problems. Neumann said the department was handicapped in selecting guard
companies because of regulations stipulating that the contract go to a qualified
U.S. firm that offers the lowest bid. "People low-bid, and then they're not
competent," he said. Finally, in March 2007, the department turned to ArmorGroup.
The firm, which also guarded the British Embassy in Kabul, was one of only two
bidders deemed technically qualified by the department's acquisition and
security specialists. Its price was about $3 million a month, officials say. "ArmorGroup
was not a small, undercapitalized, underfunded, fly-by-night organization,"
Kennedy said. "They put forth a proposal that met every requirement." But within
weeks of the company starting work, the State Department sent ArmorGroup a
warning that its deficiencies -- including shortages of guards and armored
vehicles -- were so serious that "the security of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul is
in jeopardy," according to the House Subcommittee on Contracting Oversight.
State Department officials issued eight more warnings to the company over the
next two years, including one last September threatening to terminate the
contract. Despite the problems, the department stuck with ArmorGroup, agreeing
this summer to extend its contract for a year. State Department officials have
said that the company appeared to be making progress and that changing firms
would be disruptive. A spokeswoman for Wackenhut, which took over ArmorGroup
North America last year, declined to comment. In a lawsuit filed last week,
former ArmorGroup supervisor James Gordon accuses the company not only of
failing to properly staff the embassy but also of lying to the State Department
about its capabilities. The operation "was a complete shambles," he said.
September 12, 2009 New York Times
When a security guard at the United States Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan,
was leaving for breakfast Monday morning, he froze at the sight of a crude
poster of a rat hanging on his door. “Warning!” the poster said in stark, black
letters. “Rats can cost you your job and your family.” The guard was a
whistle-blower who had told of security lapses and lewd, drunken bacchanals by
fellow workers, sparking an outcry and enraging Secretary of State Hillary
Rodham Clinton. Now he wonders whether he should have kept his mouth shut.
“Threats are still running rampant here,” he said in a telephone conversation
from Kabul, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal. “So even
though it looks like State may finally turn things around, no one’s ready to
celebrate yet.” Such skepticism may be warranted. A review of two years of
e-mail messages, letters and memos reveals that the State Department had long
known of the serious problems with ArmorGroup, the contractor chosen to protect
its embassy. The complaints went beyond the lurid pranks that made headlines,
the documents show, and included serious understaffing, bullying by management,
petty corruption and abusive work conditions. In fact, the deficiencies became
so severe that they threatened the security of the compound, the documents show,
and State Department officials withheld payments to ArmorGroup as a way to
compel it to comply with the terms of its agreement. On a few occasions,
government officials warned the company that if it did not correct the most
egregious problems it would lose the five-year, $189 million deal. Yet both
times the contract came up for renewal, in 2008 and 2009, the State Department
opted to extend it, officials confirmed. The troubles with the ArmorGroup
contract, and the State Department’s frustrated dealings with the company over
two years and through two administrations, illustrate how the government has
become dependent on the private security companies that work in war zones, and
has struggled to manage companies that themselves are sometimes loosely run and
do not always play by the government’s rules. With a stretched military, the
government relies on the security companies themselves to vet, train, and
discipline the guards, all at the lowest cost. “It’s expensive for the State
Department to withdraw a contract from one company, rebid the project and award
it to a new one,” said Janet Goldstein, a Washington lawyer who represents one
of the ArmorGroup whistleblowers. “So businesses know that once they get a
contract, State may ding them around a little bit, but it’s not going to fire
them.” The perils of this reliance were most graphically illustrated in Iraq in
2007, when security guards from another contractor, Blackwater, were involved in
shootings that left 17 civilians dead on a Baghdad street. But interviews and
documents show that the ArmorGroup affair, in its mundane, unsavory details,
offers perhaps a more representative look inside the troubled relationship
between contractors and the government in war zones. State Department officials
acknowledge they had a litany of complaints about the company, none of which,
they insist, compromised the security of the embassy. But they profess to being
deeply embarrassed by reports of parties where security guards were photographed
naked, fondling and urinating on each other. “I’ve been doing this for 37 years;
I’m proud of what I do,” said Patrick F. Kennedy, the undersecretary of state
for management who oversees outside contractors. But, he added, “This is
humiliating.” Mr. Kennedy, however, defended the State Department’s overall
handling of the contract. The frequent letters of complaint the government sent
to ArmorGroup, he said, were evidence that the department was keeping close tabs
on the company. The “greatest majority” of the failures cited in the letters
were addressed, he said. Part of the problem, officials said, was that the
guards are housed in a complex six miles from the embassy, Camp Sullivan, with
little oversight by State Department officials. Susan Pitcher, a spokeswoman for
Wackenhut Services, the American subsidiary of the Danish company that owns
ArmorGroup, referred questions to the State Department, saying only that it was
cooperating with the government’s investigation. On Monday, the independent
Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan will hold a hearing to
examine the State Department’s oversight of the contract. Christopher Shays, a
former congressman and co-chairman of the commission, said there was “a serious
failure on the part of the State Department in being unable to compel the
contractor to fulfill its commitment.” The disclosures, which were originally
made by a nonprofit organization, Project on Government Oversight, deeply
rattled the State Department. At a staff meeting following the release of the
group’s report, senior officials said, Mrs. Clinton vented her anger about the
lurid pictures. Karl W. Eikenberry, a retired Army general who became President
Obama’s ambassador to Afghanistan last May, was livid, an official said, because
he had never been briefed about the problems. Despite their unease with
contractors, officials acknowledged the department had no choice but to keep
using them. “In situations where there is a surge of intense security
requirements, it is a real challenge,” said Jacob J. Lew, the deputy secretary
of state for management and resources. “We cannot reduce the security presence.”
The State Department was not in a buyer’s market when it looked for a company to
protect its embassy in Kabul. It picked ArmorGroup in March 2007, after its
previous choice, MVM, proved unable to marshal the necessary personnel or
equipment, officials said. Of the eight companies that bid for the contract the
second time around, only two were deemed technically capable. ArmorGroup was the
cheapest. The company’s most recent contract extension was granted in June this
year, after a Senate hearing in which one of its executives, Samuel Brinkley, a
Wackenhut vice president, said in sworn testimony that his company was in full
compliance with the terms of its contract, and a State Department official,
William H. Moser, a deputy assistant secretary of state, also under oath, said
he was satisfied with the company’s performance. In interviews, ArmorGroup
whistleblowers said they felt betrayed by the testimony. By many measures, they
said, things were worse, not better. After largely uneventful company barbecues
morphed into what have been described as scenes from “The Lord of the Flies,” at
least a dozen of the men started a document trail of their own, sending e-mail
messages and photographs to the Project on Government Oversight. According to
interviews and those documents, from July 2007 to April 2009, the State
Department issued ArmorGroup at least nine warnings, nearly one every other
month, about contract violations that ranged from mundane concerns about the
company’s ability to keep accurate personnel logs, to more critical concerns
about corruption among company managers and the hardships faced by
sleep-deprived, underpaid guards — the majority of them Gurkhas from Nepal — who
could not understand simple commands in English. While the Gurkhas were largely
the source of the language problems, the lewd hazing rituals were largely the
activity of the native English speakers, a mix of Americans, South Africans, New
Zealanders and Australians. In 2008, after ArmorGroup was acquired by the Danish
company, G4S, Wackenhut informed the State Department it was taking control of
the Kabul contract, and promised to fix any problems. Government officials
agreed to give the new owners a chance. According to their own correspondence,
their optimism seemed to dim fairly quickly. On Aug. 22, 2008, the State
Department wrote to ArmorGroup to express concerns that staffing shortages were
so severe the company might not be able to provide security after a situation
with mass casualties. On Sept. 21, 2008, the State Department deducted $2.4
million in payments from ArmorGroup, warning that its failure to provide a
sufficient number of guards “gravely endangers the performance of guard
services.” In March 2009, the department again advised ArmorGroup that it had
“grave concerns” about staffing shortages, noting that inspectors on a recent
tour found 18 guardposts left uncovered. In April, it denied ArmorGroup’s
request for a third waiver to the requirement that it teach its foreign guards
English. A month later, without much explanation, ArmorGroup told the State
Department that deficiencies relating to language and staffing had been
resolved. And a month after that, a senior State Department official told the
Senate Subcommittee on Contracting Oversight that “despite contractual
deficiencies, the performance by ArmorGroup North America has been and is
sound.” “I sat in the audience that day, and shook my head in disbelief,” said
James Gordon, a former ArmorGroup executive who has filed a whistleblower’s
lawsuit against the company. He says he was forced out for complaining about the
problems. “I knew that conditions at Camp Sullivan were deteriorating, that the
contract continued to be understaffed, that the conditions in Kabul were getting
more dangerous, and that the U.S. Embassy was facing grave threats.”
September 10, 2009 New York Times
Two former employees of a private contractor hired to provide security at
the United States Embassy in Afghanistan charged that State Department officials
were aware as early as 2007 that guards and supervisors were involved in lewd
conduct. In a lawsuit filed Wednesday, one of the former employees, James
Gordon, a native of New Zealand who served as director of operations at the
contractor, ArmorGroup North America, charged that he had spoken numerous times
with State Department officials about significant problems that threatened
security at the embassy. Among other things, he said that ArmorGroup hired
guards who could not speak English and had no security experience; that the
company employed fewer guards than needed and worked them for longer hours than
at other embassies to cut costs; and that it allowed managers and employers to
hire prostitutes. “Their goal was to perform the contract as cheaply as
possible,” said Mr. Gordon, speaking by telephone from Kabul, Afghanistan’s
capital, where he is now employed by another private security contractor which
he declined to name. “Their goal was to do everything they could to prevent the
State Department from discovering their multiple contract violations and
operational shortcomings. Their goal was to provide a fig leaf of security at
the embassy, and to pray to God that nobody got killed.” Mr. Gordon and another
former supervisor, John Gorman, said they warned State Department officials in
Kabul several times that ArmorGroup was plagued with problems and that it was
determined to cover them up. They said that as a result of their efforts to
correct the problems and to make the government aware of the issues, ArmorGroup
forced them to leave their jobs. As evidence to support his assertions, Mr.
Gorman provided a packet of memos and e-mail messages that he said he and two
other former employees gave State Department officials in June 2007, including a
three-page memo in which he outlined an array of contract violations. Among
them, he wrote: “The training program run for new hires has been plagued with
hazing and intimidation of students by students. This included physical threats
and perversions.” Senior State Department officials said they were unaware that
guards had engaged in that kind of activity at their living quarters at a base
in Kabul. The officials spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to
speak about a continuing investigation. The charges echoed those in a report
released last week by an independent group, the Project on Government Oversight,
which accused the guards and supervisors of deviant behavior. Secretary of State
Hillary Rodham Clinton ordered an investigation, and about 16 guards and
supervisors were fired or have resigned. ArmorGroup North America, based in
McLean, Va., was acquired in 2008 by a Danish security company, G4S, and its
American subsidiary, Wackenhut Services Inc. In a written statement, Wackenhut
described Mr. Gordon’s allegations as “overstated, ill-founded, not based on any
personal knowledge or otherwise lacking in legal merit.”
September 10, 2009 AP
A former manager for the security contractor protecting the U.S. Embassy in
Afghanistan says the company lowballed its bid for the work and then failed to
hire enough guards or fix faulty equipment. The allegations come after an
independent watchdog group said last week that ArmorGroup guards were subjected
to abuse and hazing by supervisors who created a climate of fear and
intimidation. On Thursday, James Gordon, former director of operations at
ArmorGroup North America, alleged the company bid too low in order to win the
contract and then cut corners to keep profits up. Gordon says he was fired for
reporting the problems. He also claims ArmorGroup withheld from Congress
information about employees who went to brothels. Wackenhut Services,
ArmorGroup's parent company, had no immediate comment.
September 2, 2009 The Guardian
Pictures have emerged showing private contractors at the embassy holding
'deviant and lewd' parties. The US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, has
ordered an investigation into allegations that private contractors employed to
protect the American embassy in Afghanistan were engaged in "deviant and lewd"
parties that have been compared to Lord of the Flies. The decision to launch the
inquiry came after an independent group sent her a 10-page dossier yesterday
claiming that the security guards at the embassy had been engaged in drunken
parties involving prostitutes and the kind of ritual humiliation associated with
gang initiation. Pictures and video footage were attached to the dossier. The
dossier, compiled by the independent investigative group Project on Government
Insight, includes an email allegedly from a guard currently serving in Kabul
describing scenes in which guards and supervisors are "peeing on people, eating
potato chips out of [buttock] cracks, vodka shots out of [buttock] cracks (there
is video of that one), broken doors after drnken [sic] brawls, threats and
intimidation from those leaders participating in this activity". The allegations
are an embarrassment at a time when the Obama administration is struggling to
win hearts and minds in Afghanistan and the Muslim world in general. It comes
against the backdrop of the continuing controversy over the widespread use by
the US of private contractors in war zones, of which the most notorious was
Blackwater, now named Xe. The group at the centre of the new allegations are the
ArmorGroup, part of the Florida-based Wackenhut group, one of the biggest
private security organisations in the US. The organisation did not respond
immediately today to the allegations. The Project on Government Insight, which
was established in 1981 to track military procurement and bring to light
evidence of any corruption, described the environment at Camp Sullivan, where
the guards were housed outside Kabul, as comparable to the anarchy in William
Golding's Lord of the Flies. It said about 300 of the 450 ArmorGroup guards are
Gurkhas and the rest are a mix of Australians, South Africans and Americans. In
the dossier, it said that guards were "engaging in near-weekly deviant hazing
and humiliation of subordinates" . It claimed that some guards had barricaded
themselves in their rooms out of fear that the alleged hazing might harm them
physically. It further claims that guard force supervisors "made no secret that,
to celebrate a birthday, they brought prostitutes into Camp Sullivan, which
maintains a sign-in log." According to the report, Afghan nationals, as Muslims,
were humiliated by the behaviour and the apparently free-flowing use of alcohol.
The pictures could be picked up by the Taliban and used as propaganda against
the US and its allies. But the Project on Government Insight stressed that
comparisons should not be made with the pictures of abuse at the Iraqi prison,
Abu Ghraib, because no allegations of torture are being made. The report says
that the general breakdown in discipline poses a threat to the security of the
embassy. Ian Kelly, the state department spokesman, said of the reports of wild,
anarchic partying: "These are very serious allegations, and we are treating them
that way." Clinton has "zero tolerance" for the behaviour described and has
directed a "review of the whole system" for farming out security to private
contractors that may have threatened the safety of embassy personnel, Kelly
said. The embassy said today: "Nothing is more important to us than the safety
and security of all embassy personnel - Americans and Afghan - and respect for
the cultural and religious values of all Afghans." It added: "We have taken
immediate steps to review all local guard force policies and procedures and have
taken all possible measures to ensure our security is sound." Senator Claire
McCaskill, a Democrat who heads a subcommittee on contractor oversight, wrote to
the state department calling for the inquiry in the light of the report.
McCaskill's committee earlier this year conducted its own hearings on the
involvement of ArmorGroup in Afghanistan.
September 1, 2009 Washington Post
Private security contractors who guard the U.S. embassy in Kabul have
engaged in lewd behavior and hazed subordinates, demoralizing the undermanned
force and posing a "significant threat" to security at time when the Taliban is
intensifying attacks in the Afghan capital, according to an investigation
released Tuesday by a government watchdog group. The Project on Government
Oversight launched the probe after more than a dozen security guards contacted
the group to report misconduct and morale problems within the force of 450
guards that lives at Camp Sullivan, a few miles from the U.S. embassy compound.
In one incident in May, more than a dozen guards took weapons, night vision
goggles and other key equipment and engaged in an unauthorized "cowboy" mission
in Kabul, leaving the embassy "largely night blind," POGO wrote in a letter to
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton outlining the security violations. The
guards dressed in Afghan tunics and scarves in violation of contract rules and
hid in abandoned buildings in a reconnaissance mission that was not part of
their training or mission. Later two heads of the guard force, Werner Ilic and
Jimmy Lemon, issued a "letter of recognition" praising the men for "conspicuous
intrepidity (sic)" with the U.S. State Department logo on the letter head. "They
were living out some sort of delusion," one of the whistle-blower guards said
Tuesday in an interview with The Washington Post from Kabul. "It presented a
huge opportunity for an international incident," said the guard who spokes on
condition of anonymity because he feared retribution. The report recommends that
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates immediately assign U.S. military personnel to
supervise the guards and remove the management of the current force. It also
calls on the State Department to hold accountable diplomatic officials who
failed to provide adequate oversight of the contract. The report also found that
supervisors held near-weekly parties in which they urinated on themselves and
others, drank vodka poured off each other's exposed buttocks, fondled and kissed
one another and gallivanted around virtually nude. Photos and video of the
escapades were released with the POGO investigation. "The lewd and deviant
behavior of approximately 30 supervisors and guards has resulted in complete
distrust of leadership and a breakdown of the chain of command, compromising
security," POGO said in the letter to Clinton. The guards work for ArmorGroup,
North America, which has an $180 million annual contract with the State
Department to secure the embassy and the 1,000 diplomats, staff and Afghan
nationals who work there. The State Department renewed the contract in July
despite finding numerous performance deficiencies by ArmorGroup in recent years
which were the subject of a Senate subcommittee hearing in June. Susan Pitcher,
a spokeswoman for Wackenhut Services, Inc., the Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. company
that owns ArmorGroup, declined to comment on Tuesday's POGO report. Conduct of
contractors providing security in Iraq and Afghanistan has been the subject of
controversy and other investigations in recent years. The government relies
heavily on such contractors for security and other needs. A new Congressional
Research Service report has found that as of March, the Defense Department had
more contract personnel than troops in Afghanistan. The 52,300 uniformed U.S.
military and 68,200 contractors in Afghanistan at that time "apparently
represented the highest recorded percentage of contractors used by DOD [Defense
Department] in any conflict in the history of the United States," the report
said. Some 16 percent of the contractors are involved in providing security, a
much higher percentage than the 10 percent that were used in Iraq. Although
contractors provide many essential services, "they also pose management
challenges in monitoring performance and preventing fraud," according to Steven
Aftergood, who first disclosed the congressional report on his Secrecy News Web
site.
May 16, 2009 The West
He literally cooked to death. Trapped in a prison van for four hours,
suffocated by temperatures that climbed to more than 50C, the Aboriginal elder
had no way to communicate with security officers sitting just a metre away, in
the airconditioned cab. His only sustenance was a small bottle of water and a
meat pie. When he finally collapsed on the van floor, the metal was so hot it
seared his skin. Yesterday, Corrective Services Commissioner Ian Johnson
travelled to Kalgoorlie to publicly apologise to Mr Ward’s family, accepting
responsibility for the 46-year-old’s death in January last year. It was a
dramatic end to a coronial inquest that has revealed a litany of failures in the
justice and custodial systems in WA’s outback. Widow Nancy Ward and her children
will return to Laverton next week after sitting quietly and with dignity
throughout the case, which has attracted the attention of the United Nations and
the Australian Human Rights Commission. Mr Ward, a conservation worker, a
supporter and interpreter for local police and an advocate and educator for
children of the Gibson Desert, was an international ambassador for the
Ngaanyatjarra people. His family say he was treated like an animal. Mr Ward had
been drinking on Australia Day last year in the remote Goldfields town of
Laverton when he was arrested for driving with more than four times the legal
alcohol limit. Conducting a quasi-court hearing for Mr Ward at his cell door at
the local police station, justice of the peace Barrye Thompson remanded him in
custody to face court in Kalgoorlie the following day. Mr Thompson told the
inquest he had no formal training when appointed as a JP and could not even
remember whether he had read the Bail Act. The Aboriginal Legal Service was not
contacted. Guards and police officers testified the prison vans used by Global
Solutions Limited and maintained by the State were notoriously unreliable,
sub-standard and the air-conditioning was often faulty. GSL’s supervisor in
Kalgoorlie, Leanne Jenkins, had warned her management an incident would occur
unless the vehicles were replaced. At 11.20am, the GSL prison van pulled into a
secure area at Laverton police station where the guards were told they would
have a trouble-free passenger. Mr Ward made a comment about the warm day and a
guard told him “the quicker he got into the van, the quicker the
air-conditioning would kick in”. But the air-conditioning did not work: it had
been reported faulty in the GSL maintenance log more than a month earlier.
Before making the continuous 360km journey to Kalgoorlie, the guards did not
tell Mr Ward there was a duress alarm in the back of the van in case he needed
help. Towards the end of the trip, they heard a loud thump. Pulling over on to
the side of the road and opening the outer door of the van, the guards felt the
heat radiating from the rear pod and they saw Mr Ward face-down on the van floor
— unconscious and unresponsive. Reaching into the back of the van felt like a
“blast from a furnace”, according to Dr Lucien LaGrange, who assisted in
removing Mr Ward’s lifeless body at Kalgoorlie Hospital. Doctors found
full-thickness contact burns on his stomach and tried for 20 minutes to
resuscitate Mr Ward, whose skin felt like a “hot cup of coffee”. They managed to
get a brief return of a heartbeat, but after putting him in an ice bath, his
body temperature was still 41.7C. Coroner Alastair Hope is due to deliver his
findings on June 12. For now, the Ward family will have to return to a community
missing a leader. It is little comfort to them that money was allocated in this
week’s State Budget to replace the fleet of transport vans — four years after
the Department for Corrective Services undertook to do so. “I am sorry,” Mr
Johnson told Mrs Ward yesterday. “I have a deep regret but no matter what I say,
it’s not going to change what happened.”
April 30, 2009 Miami Herald
Three weeks after Miami-Dade County declared that Wackenhut Corp. bilked
taxpayers of millions and would no longer do county business, the security firm
fired back with its own show of force: a $20 million lawsuit against the county
and two top officials. The escalating fight centers on allegations that
Wackenhut Corp. overbilled Miami-Dade Transit for security services at Metrorail
stops and failed to adequately staff guard posts. The Palm Beach Gardens-based
firm, which does other security work for the county, has held the mass transit
security contract for 20 years, though its latest contract expires in November.
But the stakes for Wackenhut may go beyond its current business with the county.
In its lawsuit, filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Miami, the security
company said the move by Miami-Dade to bar the firm from working for the county
could jeopardize contracts with other government agencies across the country.
The future damages we ''will suffer as a result of this unfair and malicious
taint'' on our ''reputation are incalculable,'' Wackenhut said in the lawsuit,
which seeks $20 million in damages and asks the court to stop the county from
relying on an audit which concludes time sheets were doctored and transit stops
unguarded. The suit also names as defendants County Manager George Burgess and
County Auditor Cathy Jackson. Wackenhut contends the county audit used improper
methodology. ''It has no basis in reality,'' said Wackenhut President Drew
Levine. ``We've done our job and done it well.'' Miami-Dade County spokeswoman
Victoria Mallette said the county stands by the report authored by the
government's Audit Management Services department. ''We want to be made whole,''
said Mallette. ``We haven't been made whole. It would be irresponsible for us to
continue doing business with an entity that we believe has overbilled us.''
Earlier this month, Burgess wrote in a memo to commissioners that as a result of
the audit the county would seek to recover $3.4 million in alleged overbillings
and support an ongoing whistle blower's civil case against Wackenhut. Burgess
named several firms to replace Wackenhut guards at Miami-Dade railway stops and
bus facilities, the Juvenile Services Department and Public Works Department.
The county manager also declared the county will seek ``debarment.'' The county
move earlier this month and subsequent lawsuit Wednesday come several years
after charges of overbillings and so-called ''ghost posts'' were first raised.
The county -- roundly rebuked for poor stewardship of the transit system -- has
been criticized for reacting slowly to the allegations. The whistle blower's
civil court case against Wackenhut was filed in 2005 and the audit was completed
in 2008.
March 14, 2009 Sunday Mail
Former Defence Secretary John Reid faced fierce criticism yesterday as it
emerged the world's largest security firm had won a huge contract from the
Ministry of Defence weeks after taking him on as a consultant. Mr Reid - who ran
the MoD until May 2006 before resigning from the Cabinet while Home Secretary in
June 2007 - was hired by G4S three months ago for £50,000 a year to offer
'strategic advice'. This week, it was awarded a four-year contract to supply
private security guards for around 200 MoD and military sites across Britain in
a deal thought to be worth tens of millions of pounds. While many former
ministers have taken private-sector jobs, it is unusual for such a senior
Government figure and sitting MP to work for a company so closely linked to
their former department. Opposition MPs last night said Mr Reid's earnings from
G4S were 'totally inappropriate', while the Taxpayers' Alliance campaign group
called for the rules governing employment for ex-ministers to be reviewed
urgently.
January 22, 2009 Morning Star
DAVID Miliband said that the war on terror was an error, but some people
don't regret it. Private security companies like Group 4 made a mint. Now, it
wants to spread its good fortune - this month, Group 4 Security gave a £50,000
position to former Labour minister John Reid as an "adviser." Reid fits in this
part-time job when he isn't too busy representing the good people of Airdrie and
Shotts as their Member of Parliament. Group 4 has plenty of reasons to want
access to the contact book of a former home and defence secretary - the firm now
supplies the armed guards looking after British officials in Iraq and
Afghanistan while locking up prisoners, asylum-seekers and "terror suspects" in
Britain, so Reid is worth every one of the five million pennies that they are
giving the man. Reid was once a Communist Party member, but abandoned Marxism in
favour of new Labour. This is odd, because his career seems to illustrate the
crudest and most determinist kind of Marxism. For years, Marxists have been
grappling with the subtle and sophisticated ways in which the capitalist class
dominates society, but Group 4 opted for a very unsubtle approach - the
capitalists just hired Labour's representative. Reid hasn't always hawked his
brawn for the money men. Back in 1992, Reid signed a House of Commons motion
calling on Sir Norman Fowler to resign from the board of Group 4. The motion
said that the House "regrets that the right honourable Member for Sutton
Coldfield (Norman Fowler), chairman of the Conservative Party, has not seen fit
to resign his directorship of another Group 4 company, Group 4 Securitas, and
urges him to do so." It added: "The government should suspend all further moves
to privatisation within the criminal justice system." Reid's call for Fowler to
resign from Group 4 and for the government to shun the firm came after the
company let a number of prisoners escape from their vans on the way to court.
Whizz forward a decade and a half and Reid, having demanded that Fowler abandon
Group 4, has himself taken a job with the firm. In the meantime, Conservative
and Labour governments have not stopped their "privatisation of the criminal
justice system," they have expanded it. Group 4 has men with truncheons in
Britain and men carrying guns in Iraq. Nor has the firm become any less
accident-prone. Group 4 Security prefers to be called G4S because, in ad
people's language, the brand is tarnished. Group 4 was even described as a
"national laughing stock" by the government's own lawyers in court in 2003 after
a riot at an immigration detention centre that it ran which was later burned to
the ground. Things haven't improved since. Reid himself sent the firm to new
frontiers, where the firm ran new fiascos. When Reid was home secretary, the Law
Lords told him that just labelling foreigners "terror suspects" didn't mean that
he could lock them up without trial. Reid turned to Group 4 for help. It cobbled
together something called "control orders," a house arrest for these "terror
suspects" administered by Group 4 and other private firms. Control orders were
simultaneously too draconian and too lax - prisoners, including vulnerable men
who had been tortured in their home countries, were tagged and monitored by
Group 4. Those who stuck by the rules were pushed to the edge of mental illness
by the isolation of the strict house arrest. At the same time, Group 4 allowed
another prisoner to simply disappear. This may have been embarrassing for the
firm and for Reid, but they manfully hid their red faces and entered into a new
relationship when Reid left government. Group 4 has risen thanks to the crudest
economic determinism - Reid, who authorised the signing of cheques for Group 4
as a minister, ends up getting cheques from the firm. Reid is not alone. A small
squad of politicians worked to get Group 4 where it is today. First, Tory
chairman Fowler helped the firm get into the prisons business in the 1990s.
Group 4 tightened its grip on British jails last year when it took over rival
private prisons firm GSL. It bought GSL from an investment company called
Englefield Capital, which employs another Labour ex-minister, former defence
secretary George Robertson, as an adviser. Group 4 then broke into the
international mercenary trade by buying a company called Armor Group, whose
armed men guard British officials in Iraq and Afghanistan. Up until this, Armor
Group's chairman had been another top politician - leading Tory MP Malcolm
Rifkind. Twenty years ago, the idea that a private company would run our jails
and wars would have looked like science fiction. By hiring politicians, the
"security industry" made it a reality.
January 11, 2009 The Observer
John Reid, the former home secretary, has cashed in on his ministerial
experience by taking a £45,000-a-year job with private security company G4S, the
Observer has learnt. His appointment comes just days after a parliamentary
committee warned that former ministers have been exploiting their insider
knowledge "with impunity". Formed from a merger of Group 4 and Securicor, G4S is
Britain's largest security firm with contracts ranging from private prisons to
the armed guards defending British officials in Iraq. The appointment was
disclosed by the advisory committee on business appointments, which polices
former ministers' job applications. Reid has been judged free to lobby ministers
and officials on behalf of the security company. The public administration
committee (PAC) called last week for all lobbying activity to be registered and
monitored by a tougher watchdog - claiming the industry's attempt at
self-regulation had entirely failed. "We are strongly concerned that, with the
rules as loosely and as variously interpreted as they currently are, former
ministers in particular appear to be able to use with impunity the contacts they
built up as public servants to further a private interest," said a statement
from the PAC.
June 18, 2008 NBC6
Miami-Dade County said it is poised to make good on its promise to fire
Wackenhut Security from its massive contract on Metrorail trains unless it
repays taxpayers millions of dollars. NBC6 has obtained internal county memos
that confirm that Miami-Dade County is asking other security firms to submit
bids to replace Wackenhut on Metrorail trains and other facilities. The county
said Wackenhut's only hope of not getting fired is if it returns up to $6
million in taxpayer dollars. The Metrorail and Metromover systems are guarded by
Wackenhut Security in a lucrative no-bid contract. The county said it is getting
ready to replace Wackenhut, cutting short the existing contract unless Wackenhut
makes amends. "It's very troubling," said Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez. In
May, Alvarez threatened to fire Wackenhut. On Tuesday, it was clear that was no
idle threat. "We are prepared to cancel all contracts with the Wackenhut
corporation and demand that we get the money that's owed to us," Alvarez said.
The county said Wackenhut scheduled guards to work partial shifts while billing
taxpayers for a full shift and sometimes billing taxpayers for a post that had
no guards at all, NBC6's Jeff Burnside reported. The allegations were the same
as those contained in an NBC6 investigation called "A Question Of Security." The
amount in question is up to $6 million. An independent audit claimed it was much
more. One problem is that any company that replaces Wackenhut might need to hire
some of Wackenhut's guards because of the size of the contract. In an internal
memo, Wackenhut called that, "underhanded … tactics by third-party instigators."
A labor union urged county commissioners Tuesday to improve working conditions
in any new contract. Wackenhut had no response on Tuesday, Burnside reported.
Previously, the company has disputed the allegations.
May 9, 2008 Miami-Herald
The Wackenhut Corp. overbilled Miami-Dade County as much as $6
million over three years for phantom security guards at county transit
stations, according to a long-awaited audit released Thursday. County
auditor Cathy Jackson -- who reviewed a sample of the bills -- found
that Wackenhut, one of the country's largest security firms, routinely
charged the county for empty guard posts at Metrorail stations and along
bus routes, and relied on inaccurate and falsified records to try to
cover up the overbilling. Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez has given
Wackenhut 90 days to repay the county or rebut the audit findings or he
will cancel the company's no-bid contract, along with a separate
Wackenhut contract for guards at a juvenile detention center. Jackson
said Wackenhut should also pay the county an additional $233,000 for
violating the terms of its contract. Wackenhut's billing is also being
examined by public-corruption detectives with the Miami-Dade Police
Department. 'There is no disputing that [Miami-Dade Transit] was billed
for hours not worked by Wackenhut security officers, which is a very
serious offense,'' County Manager George Burgess wrote in a memo to
Alvarez. Wackenhut, however, does dispute the audit. The company says
Jackson used unreliable records to determine that posts were uncovered,
and ignored other records that could prove guards were on duty. FIGURES
DISPUTED -- While Wackenhut says it will reimburse the county for any
''substantiated billing errors,'' the company says Jackson's conclusion
of $6 million in overbilling from 2002 to 2005 is an exaggerated
estimate based on a small sample. ''If you start with a false premise,
you end up with a false conclusion,'' said Bruce Rubin, a company
spokesman. ``We respectfully but forcefully disagree with the auditor's
methodology.'' Jackson based her estimate on a review of 505 billing
records -- only .25 percent of the bills submitted in the three years
studied -- which found $14,722 in questionable charges. She also found
$83,665 in suspicious charges, but these were not included in her sample
for estimation purposes. Wackenhut has been providing security for
Miami-Dade Transit since 1989, and the contract has been awarded without
bidding since 1994. The current contract, which pays Wackenhut as much
as $17 million a year, is set to expire in November 2009. The security
company, based in Palm Beach Gardens, has also spent the past three
years fending off an unusual lawsuit brought by a former guard at the
county's Juvenile Assessment Center, who accused her former employer of
padding its bill to the county. The former guard's attorney, H. Mark
Vieth, has said he believes the overbilling could be as much as $3.6
million a year. He has compiled sworn statements from ex-guards who said
they struggled to fill unmanned posts, submitted false records and
received pay for hours they didn't work. Jackson ''found exactly what
we've been telling the county for a while now,'' Vieth said. ''I could
have practically written that report for her. The only difference,
really, is that we're auditing 100 percent of the bills and she's found
this much fraud'' based on a far smaller sample. Wackenhut has denied
wrongdoing in the suit and has challenged Vieth to provide proof of
specific instances of overbilling. Vieth has enlisted a team of
investigators and bookkeepers to sort through Wackenhut bills, sign-in
sheets, log books and other records to prove his case, which is not yet
scheduled for trial. If he wins the case -- brought under the county's
False Claims Act -- his client will receive 25 percent of any damages
and the county will receive 75 percent. REFUSED TO TESTIFY -- Yet the
lawsuit has put Vieth at odds with the county. Last month he sought a
contempt of court order against Jackson after she refused to testify
about the audit before it was completed. Vieth plans to call her again
for a deposition next week. The audit was costly to Wackenhut even
before its release. The company had been selected by county staffers to
win another $4.8 million county security contract -- before county
commissioners, worried about the audit findings, decided Tuesday to
scrap the bids and start over. In her audit, Jackson said Wackenhut
constantly shifted guards around to cover unguarded posts, pulling in
supervisors or patrols from the bus routes, but the county was billed as
though all these jobs were filled. In some cases, log books at Metrorail
stations contained no notes to prove a guard was there, the audit found.
In other cases, the logs and other records showed guards in two
different locations at the same time. Records showed that one armed
guard was on duty for 34 ½ hours in a row -- violating a rule capping
guards at 13 ½ hours in a 24-hour period and ''leaving in question the
ability of armed employees to remain alert and responsive,'' the audit
said. Wackenhut officials said the log books were never intended to be
used for timekeeping, and said the absence of notes in the books do not
prove a guard wasn't on duty.
May 7, 2008 Palm Beach Post
The chief of staff in training for de facto Senate President Jeff Atwater is
officially off the payroll, Atwater said Wednesday. Millionaire "Budd" Kneip of
Palm Beach Gardens earned a $7,000-a-month salary from the state for one month
and two days to learn the ins and outs of the legislature, which was dealing
with a $5 billion budget deficit. Kneip was the founder and owner of the Oasis
Group, a division of Wackenhut Corp. He has no legislative experience but has
run campaigns, including the one for Palm Beach County's 2004 half-penny sales
tax increase to build schools. Normally, the chief of staff assumes his position
when the Senate president is appointed in the fall. Atwater, R-North Palm Beach,
is being challenged in his reelection bid by Skip Campbell, D-Tamarac, who
formerly served in the Senate with him. Florida Democrats on Tuesday formally
requested public records about Kneip's hiring and asked Atwater use his campaign
account to reimburse the state for Kneip's salary. "Floridians are hurting, Sen.
Atwater, but your campaign coffers are not," Democratic Party Chairwoman Karen
Thurman said in a letter to Atwater on Tuesday. "We were going out spending
money foolishly when we don't have the money to spend," Campbell said. "Let's be
honest about it. There is no chief of staff until you become senate president."
Before Thurman's letter became public, Atwater said he had arranged in the final
days of the legislative session for Kneip to go off the payroll. The session
ended Friday. "Budd's assistance during session was invaluable. ... He has
returned home to continue developing a transition plan; I look forward to Budd
coming back to the Senate this fall," Atwater said. Thurman's demands were a way
to help Campbell, Atwater said Wednesday. "This is a chairman trying to insert
herself into a local race with no information," he said.
April 12, 2008 Palm Beach Post
Sen. Jeff Atwater has hired an aide who will get on-the-job training before
he becomes Senate president chief of staff, and Atwater's campaign opponent is
criticizing the expenditure. Robert "Budd" Kneip is a Palm Beach Gardens
businessman with no legislative experience. He founded The Oasis Group, an
outsourcing division of Wackenhut Corp. Kneip, who is earning $7,000 a month,
needed to come on board early to get the feel of how the legislature runs and
how government budgets are developed and negotiated before his new boss
officially takes over, Atwater said. Normally the chief of staff is appointed
after the legislative leader assumes his role in the fall. Atwater is being
challenged for reelection in November by Democrat Skip Campbell, a trial lawyer
who formerly served in the Senate alongside Atwater. Campbell criticized Kneip's
salary at a time when lawmakers are slashing about $5 billion from the state
budget because of plummeting tax collections. "How can we be hiring somebody for
on the job training at 7K a month when we're cutting education, food for the
poor, Medicaid treatment for the mentally ill? This is one of the most
hypocritical actions I've seen in government," Campbell said. Kneip has sat on
the advisory boards for Florida Atlantic University and the Juvenile Diabetes
Foundation, and served as chairman of the Palm Beach County Task Force on
Business Development. In the latter role, he successfully pushed a 2004
referendum for a half-penny sales tax hike to pay for building schools to comply
with the constitutional amendment limiting class sizes. Kneip's know-how at
implementing state policy at the local level and business acumen are why he's
right for the job, said Atwater, a North Palm Beach Republican. "He doesn't have
the experience in this process," Atwater said. "To have him be able to watch how
this works is going to help me as we think about structure, the design, the flow
and process of work."
January 25, 2008 WSMV
The I-Team has uncovered a cozy relationship between a Metro employee and
the security contractor he oversees. Bill Kostrub said he doesn't want to
talk about it, but part of his job with Metro government is approving payments
to Wackenhut Security, a company for which he used to work. Wackenhut is now
under investigation for billing irregularities at the election commission. “I
appreciate your coming out, but all the questions go through Velvet,” he said.
He referred reporter Nancy Amons to Velvet Hunter, who is second in command at
Metro General Services, where he works. Kostrub's job at General Services
includes reviewing the bills for security guards submitted by Wackenhut. Kostrub
was a salesman at Wackenhut until October 2006. During the time, Wackenhut was
negotiating the contract with Metro to provide security for all of its
buildings. In December 2006, while contract negotiations were still going on,
Kostrub went to work for Metro. Now he has the power to OK Wackenhut's invoices.
Amons shared the findings with Councilman Jim Gotto. "It doesn't sound good. It
doesn't look good,” he said. Channel 4 obtained a stack of invoices under the
Open Records Act that shows 67 times in the last three months, Kostrub signed
off on security guard bills submitted by Wackenhut. The bills cover the months
when Metro auditors said Wackenhut appeared to be billing Metro for ghost
employees. Metro said guards were supposed to be patrolling the Howard Office
Building every Saturday. Tax dollars paid for it, but Metro said there's no
evidence the guards were there. At least five of the Saturday bills were
approved by Kostrub. “I'm really interested that you used to work for Wackenhut
and now you approve their invoices,” said Amons. “And I can appreciate that.
Talk to Velvet about it. You guys have a good day,” Kostrub said. "There's
nothing wrong with this gentleman working for Metro, but he certainly doesn't
need to be working for Metro on this particular contract,” Gotto said. Hunter
said late Friday that Kostrup was hired through an open and competitive process
and that Metro did not have a problem with his former employment. Channel 4 and
the I-Team are not implying that Kostrup did anything wrong; they are just
asking if it creates an ethics issue.
January 17, 2008 AP
Seven guards have been caught sleeping at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant in Oak
Ridge since 2000, a federal spokesman said Wednesday. Three were fired and the
rest were disciplined, said Steven Wyatt, spokesman for the National Nuclear
Security Administration, a Department of Energy unit that oversees the Y-12
complex. The administration reported Monday only two guards had fallen asleep at
their posts in four years at the high-security plant, about 20 miles west of
Knoxville. But Wyatt said Wednesday that did not cover the full extent of
Wackenhut Services Inc.'s Oak Ridge security contract, which began in January
2000. Six cases of guard-napping involving seven officers were found during the
seven-year period. Y-12, a potential terrorist target containing the key
ingredients for a "dirty bomb," makes uranium parts for every warhead in the
U.S. nuclear arsenal. It also dismantles old weapons and is the nation's primary
storehouse for bomb-grade uranium. Wackenhut Services' napping-guard record in
Oak Ridge came up for questioning after its parent company, The Wackenhut Corp.,
recently lost a security contract for 10 nuclear power plants after sleeping
guards were found at a Pennsylvania station. However, Florida-based Wackenhut
Services Inc. is considered an independent subsidiary of The Wackenhut Corp.,
and has its own board of directors. "Given how serious NNSA considers our
responsibility of safeguarding our nuclear facilities, we feel it is important
to provide you with a complete accounting of inattention incidents involving
security police officers found sleeping on the job at Y-12," Wyatt explained.
Three officers were found "intentionally sleeping on duty" and were terminated
-- two guards in 2000 and one in 2002. The other cases were less blatant, with
discipline ranging up to three weeks' suspension without pay and 12-month
probation for all of them.
January 9, 2008 NBC
TV6
The CEO of Wackenhut Security, a South Florida company
that has been surrounded by controversy, is stepping down. A representative with
the company declined to say why Gary Sanders made the decision to quit pending a
formal announcement on Wednesday. The change at the top came at a time when
Wackenhut Security was facing mounting criticism in various cities, including
some in South Florida where its Miami-Dade County operation is the target of a
criminal probe. The county audit, which was detailed in an NBC 6 investigation
of Wackenhut billing practices, is examining whether Wackenhut overcharged
taxpayers millions of dollars. Sanders had been with Wackenhut for more than 25
years.
December 10, 2007 NBC TV6
Miami-Dade and federal investigators raided the headquarters Friday night of
one of the county's largest government contractors. NBC 6 was the first to
report in May that Wackenhut Security is under a criminal investigation for
overbilling taxpayers millions of dollars, money for work on transit and the
downtown juvenile center. NBC 6 camera's filmed public corruption investigators
and police removing boxes filled with documents from Wackenhut's Miami-Dade
headquarters on Blue Lagoon Drive. Investigators were there for several hours
and were being assisted by top Wackenhut executives. Wackenhut has repeatedly
declined to be interviewed, but said in a statement that the company was
cooperating with authorities. "The Wackenhut Corporation ('Wackenhut') continues
to cooperate with Miami-Dade County ('MDC'), and voluntarily provided MDC
additional records and documents yesterday to assist and facilitate MDC’s
investigation and audit of Wackenhut’s performance under its security contract
with the Miami Dade Transit Authority," said Drew Levine, president of the
Security Services Division. "Wackenhut is proud of its service and performance
under its contracts with Miami-Dade County and is very confident that after a
thorough investigation the County will conclude that Wackenhut acted properly
and performed its responsibilities under the contract in a highly professional
and responsible manner." The company has previously denied overbilling
taxpayers. Miami-Dade County is nearing completion of an audit of Wackenhut's
billing practices. The preliminary audit found serious discrepancies.
December 18, 2007 Yahoo Business Wire
Cognetas, an independent mid-market pan-European private equity firm
specialising in complex deals, today announces the sale of Global Solutions (GSL)
for £355 million to G4S. The sale, subject to EU merger clearance and South
African competition commission clearance, is expected to complete in 2008. GSL
is a leading provider of outsourced support services to public authorities and
corporate organisations worldwide. Services are typically provided under
long-term contracts (5 to 30 years) either directly to the end customer or
through joint ventures and Public Private Partnerships with government and
corporates. GSL has operations in the UK, South Africa and Australia. Its
service offering covers three areas: Custodial services, including prison
management, escorting, immigration, custody and training; Public Services, for
example healthcare, education and Local Authority services; and Business
services, comprising utilities, office accommodation and other managed services.
Cognetas backed the original MBO of GSL in 2004 in a £207 million (€309 million)
transaction. At the time, Cognetas underwrote equity and debt to facilitate
certainty for the vendor with an initial commitment of £105 million (€158
million) on behalf of Cognetas Fund I. This was reduced within two months to £54
million (€81 million) by introducing senior debt. The balance of the funding was
provided by Englefield Capital on behalf of the Englefield Funds. Since then
Cognetas has supported management in the implementation of a growth plan that
has seen revenues increase from £291 million in 2004 to over £400 million in
2007 through organic growth, in fill acquisition and expansion of services in
its sectors over three continents with the number of staff employed increasing
by over 25% to more than 9,500. Nigel McConnell, Managing Partner of Cognetas
commented: “We are delighted to be associated with the success of GSL over the
past three years and we are pleased to see that the dynamic management team has
built the business into a worldwide quality provider of outsourced services. We
leave the business on extremely sound and robust grounds which will help sustain
its continued growth. I am confident that being part of a larger global business
like G4S will take this business forward to a new level and I wish them well”.
November 29, 2007 The Telegraph
Group4Securicor is in talks to buy Global Solutions, a company it used to own,
for around £350m. Earlier this year, private equity firm Cognetas appointed
investment bank UBS to carry out a strategic review of Global Solutions, which
runs a number of Britain's prisons and detention centres. However, the credit
crunch forced Cognetas to put the review of Global Solutions on hold. Since
then, the company has received a number of approaches, including one from
Group4Securicor. Cognetas bought Global Solutions, which also manages hospitals,
schools and tourist offices, from Danish security firm Group 4 Falk for about
£200m three years ago. Group4Securicor is now understood to be carrying out due
diligence on the business. However, it is not the only company bidding. Sources
said US group GEO and several private equity firms have also made approaches for
the company. Global Solutions has previously come under the spotlight for the
way it runs its prisons and detention centres, following the Government's
privatisation of the sector. Earlier this year, there was a Panorama
investigation by an undercover BBC reporter, who worked as a custody officer, in
one of Global Solutions' prisons at Rye Hill. None of the parties involved would
comment.
November 20, 2007 This Is Hampshire
A SECURITY firm employee who was heavily in debt stole £25,000 following an
extraordinary blunder by two colleagues, a court heard. The cash had been
collected from the London Road branch of Nat West in Southampton - and left
overnight at the depot. The following day, Paul Dean spotted the bag and stole
it, dropping it off at home before continuing with his deliveries. Police
carried out a major investigation during which Dean and a co-driver were
suspended from their jobs with Group 4 Securicor. Seven months after the theft
last November, they executed a warrant at Dean's home and recovered more than
£10,000. Some of the proceeds had been spent on a large slim line television, Mr
Anderson added. Southampton Crown Court heard the two men who had left the cash
behind were fired and Dean's colleague, though exonerated, had resigned. Dean,
51, of Maclean Road, Bournemouth, admitted theft and was jailed for 12 months.
In mitigation, Christopher Gair said Dean lost his wife in a road accident in
1994 and had debts of £24,000. A month before the theft, he had been given two
county court judgments against him. "In a moment of madness he took advantage of
the money left there," said Mr Gair.
November 1, 2007 This Is Leicestershire
An "inside man" involved in a plot to steal £1 million from a Securicor van has
been jailed for four years. Ex-soldier Neil Colbourne, from Hinckley, worked for
the firm in the lead-up to the robbery bid, which would have involved kidnapping
a driver's wife. He was among six gang members who were jailed in connection
with the case. A court heard how the plan involved two kidnappers seizing a
driver's wife at her home in Swanscombe, Kent, and holding her hostage while
others raided her husband's security van at gunpoint. But the plan to target a
depot in Dartford, Kent, was foiled when a seventh member of the gang, brothel
keeper Vincent Calleja, turned himself in to police. Police swooped on the
gang's headquarters the night before the heist last June and found two guns and
ammunition, balaclavas, and cable ties. They also found keys to a stolen Renault
Espace. Four of the men were found guilty on June 29 of conspiracy to rob and
were sentenced on Monday at Guildford Crown Court. Ashley O'Driscoll (21), from
Eaton Grove, in Mitcham, Surrey, Billy French (22), from Steers Mead, Mitcham,
and Michael Cloherty (41), of no fixed address, were each sentenced to 15 years.
The father of Billy French, unemployed Clive Tedder (42), from Spencer Roady,
Mitcham, received 18 years. Colbourne, now 34, who had an address in Hinckley
and Orpington, Kent, had worked as a guard for Group 4 Securicor and was
sentenced to four years, while 33-year-old Wayne McKenna-Bruce, from
Chislehurst, Kent, was sentenced to three years in prison. The pair's conspiracy
to steal pleas were accepted after a court heard they had not known about the
full scale of the plot. The seventh member, Vincent Calleja (45), from Tadworth,
has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to rob and seven unrelated human trafficking
and prostitution charges, and is to be sentenced.
November 1, 2007
PR News
The Wackenhut Corporation ("Wackenhut" or "the
Company") today filed a civil action against the Service Employees International
Union ("SEIU" or "the Union"). The lawsuit is in response to the SEIU's
malicious, four-year, international corporate campaign to force Wackenhut to
recognize the Union as the employees' bargaining representative while denying
the employees their federal rights to free choice and a secret ballot election.
The SEIU's top-down, wholesale, organizing attack also would compromise the
quality of Wackenhut's services by forcing the Company to deal with a union that
also represents workers other than guards which federal law specifically
prohibits as an appropriate unit for representation and bargaining. Filed in the
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the lawsuit alleges
violations of the federal Racketeering Influenced Corporations Act, 18 U.S.C.
section 1961 et seq., and seeks injunctive relief, treble compensatory damages
and costs.
September 14, 2007 BBC
A security worker has been jailed for stealing almost £130,000 in coins from
parking meters on Teesside. Bryn Lynas, 47, of Ormesby, Middlesbrough, was
employed to empty the machines in Redcar and Cleveland. At Teesside Crown Court,
the former Group 4 Securicor Cash Services employee pleaded guilty to the theft
of £128,301 from January 2004 to May 2006. Jailing him for 21 months, Judge Tony
Briggs told Lynas he had grossly abused a position of trust. Group 4 was
contracted by Redcar and Cleveland Council to empty parking meters. An audit
revealed tens of thousands of pounds was missing and when Lynas was arrested
last year he told police: "I've got a bag full of money on my back seat." He was
interviewed and admitted taking cash from the machines, but said he had been
doing it for only 10 months The court was shown footage from a camera covertly
placed by police in Lynas' van, in which he repeatedly attempts to prise open
cash boxes with a screwdriver. He also admitted money laundering between June
2004 and last May, but disputed stealing £40,000 of the total, claiming that he
was not employed on some of the days stated in the case. But Judge Briggs said
"the loss of at least £80,000-£90,000" and "dishonesty of this magnitude"
required a significant sentence.
September 14, 2007 24 Dash
A security worker who stole nearly £130,000 in coins from parking meters he
was employed to empty is facing jail. Bryn Lynas, 47, plundered the machines in
Cleveland for two years before his bungled get-rich-quick scheme was uncovered
by his bosses. When Lynas was arrested in May last year, after an audit revealed
tens of thousands of pounds were missing, he told police: "I\'ve got a bag full
of money on my back seat." Officers searched his vehicle and found a bag
containing more than £500 stuffed in the footwell of the Renault Megane. Lynas
was interviewed and admitted taking cash from the machines, but said he had been
doing it for only 10 months. Police inquiries revealed that his partner, Susan
Shaw, also 47, had received £23,655 in her bank account from Lynas. She was
arrested for a money laundering offence, but had the charges dropped by
prosecutors at Teesside Crown Court in August. Lynas, of Ormesby, Middlesbrough,
pleaded guilty at Teesside Crown Court on August 8 to the theft of £128,301
between January 2004 and May last year, and money laundering between June 2004
and last May. His case was adjourned until today for reports. Lynas was employed
by Group 4 Securicor Cash Services, which was contracted by the borough council
to empty parking meters. Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council said it was
pleased Lynas had been brought to justice but added the cash collecting contract
was re-tendered last year and given to a different company.
September 6, 2007 News Shopper
A FORMER soldier has been jailed for four years for his part in a plot to
steal more than £1m from security vans - including his own. Neil Colbourne had
worked for Securicor for two years when he was the "victim" of an armed robbery
outside the HSBC bank in Sydenham. But he was an accomplice and slipped the
money box containing £25,000 out of the back of his van to a waiting vehicle
before calling the police claiming he had been robbed. Prosecutor Maria
Kariaskos told Guildford Crown Court the 33-year-old later changed his story,
saying there was no gun involved. He also failed to pick out the real "robbers"
in an identification parade. Officers arrested him after studying CCTV footage
of the incident on May 16 last year. He could be seen waiting for a
minute-and-a-half until the vehicle being used by the "robbers" arrived.
Colbourne, of Station Square, Petts Wood, admitted a charge of conspiracy to
steal. He also pleaded guilty to another count of conspiracy to steal for
helping a gang to plot a £1m theft from another van. The cash handler and his
old Army friend Wayne McKenna-Bruce, aged 33, gave the gang the van driver's
name and the registration numbers of his car and of two Securicor vehicles. This
enabled them to follow their intended target to his house and plan their attack.
McKenna-Bruce, from Sevenoaks, pleaded guilty to one charge of conspiracy to
steal and was sentenced to three years in jail. James Scobie, representing
McKenna-Bruce, said the two defendants thought the driver in the second incident
was in on the plot and violence would not be threatened or used.
August 26, 2007 Sunday Mail
A SECURITY van driver who claimed he was robbed by gunmen wearing fake Mexican
moustaches has admitted lying to steal more than £300,000. Ian Watt, 44, made up
the far-fetched tale about how his Group 4 van was robbed at gunpoint because he
was desperate for cash. Watt even went to the trouble of driving himself to a
forest outside Edinburgh and bound his own hands to make it look as if he had
been assaulted and robbed. Police issued an appeal for witnesses through TV and
newspapers and quizzed 500 drivers close to where the alleged robbery was meant
to have happened. But they later found CCTV footage of Watt sitting in his
vehicle at a time he said he was being beaten, bound and blindfolded by the
desperado gang. Then they checked the tracking system on his van and found it
did not match his story. Detectives confronted the ex-soldier, who admitted he
had buried the load in a nearby wood. Last week he was jailed for 16 months for
stealing £271,963.94 in cash, £41,928.72 in cheques and £236.61 in euros. He
also confessed to wasting police time. Watt claimed he took the money to help
bail out his new girlfriend, who was going through an expensive divorce. A
police insider said: "This is one of the most bizarre cases we have ever dealt
with. "The guy went to extreme measures to look convincing and on the face of it
this was a very serious robbery. "The guys working on the case were incredulous
when the truth emerged." Watt had been working for Group 4 security for more
than 20 years when he faked the robbery in May.
March 23, 2007 The Telegraph
Ministers have been forced to act after receiving disturbing evidence of
equipment failures and doctored record-keeping within Group 4 Securicor Justice
Services, which operates 60 per cent of tags for offenders released early under
the Home Detention Curfew scheme. A 130-page dossier obtained by a BBC
journalist, who worked undercover for five months in the security company's
Nottingham operations centre, includes the following allegations: A manager
secretly taped saying that three paedophiles were not being monitored. A
prisoner incorrectly returned to jail for seven weeks because of a blunder by
the security company. A violent offender breached his bail conditions by going
into a pub 10 minutes after removing his tag the night before his court
appearance. An employee mocked Victor Bates, a campaigner against tagging whose
wife Marian was shot dead in their jewellery shop after the gunman's accomplice
had ripped off his tag. A prisoner convicted of indecent assault on home leave
was unmonitored for several days because his tagging equipment failed. The
revelations will further undermine confidence in tagging after figures revealed
that inmates let out under the system committed more than 1,000 violent crimes
including four manslaughters, one murder, 56 woundings and more than 700
assaults since it was introduced in 1999. The investigation also discovered
evidence of staff fabricating records to save money. G4S is paid around £45
million a year by the Home Office to administer the curfew system. After being
confronted with the evidence G4S, which has admitted there was faulty equipment,
has been forced to apologise and has suspended five employees in Nottingham. A
spokesman for the Home Office said: "Public protection is the Government's first
priority. The findings of this programme are of concern. We are reviewing the
contract and will be asking G4S urgent questions to ensure that these
allegations are thoroughly investigated and issues arising are addressed." The
investigation by a team from BBC Inside Out East Midlands disclosed that the
monitoring boxes in tagged offenders homes, which relay information about their
movements, routinely broke down. One factor in the failure of the system could
be that G4S, which has admitted there was a batch of faulty equipment in
Nottingham, uses the mobile telephone network technology rather than fixed
lines. Steve Green, the Chief Constable of Nottinghamshire, said the Home Office
had to establish whether the Nottingham problems were nationwide. "I want to
urgently know if is this a Nottingham problem or a G4S problem. If it is a G4S
problem and this is the way company is run then that puts a huge responsibility
on the Home Office to tackle and address because that is not acceptable," he
said. Ian Ridgely, chief operations officer at G4S, said: "We believe in a small
number of cases that we may not have been monitoring to the level that we would
expect to, we apologise for that, we accept that. From that point of view we
recognise that the Home Office requires us to work to a very high standard and
of course we are sorry that in some minor number of instances, we may not have
operated to those standards."
February 20, 2007 Great Yarmouth Mercury
An opportunist thief stole a Securicor van containing more than £35,000
after a guard left the keys in the ignition and the engine running, a court
heard yesterday. The Securicor guard had just collected the cash from Norwich
city centre car parks leaving his security van unlocked, when Martin Chapman,
31, saw his chance and stole the van containing the cash, Norwich Crown Court
heard. Duncan O'Donnell, prosecuting, said the van was later found abandoned at
Swanton Road travellers site in Norwich and Chapman was later arrested and
£26,000 of the cash was recovered. However Mr O'Donnell said the security guard
responsible for leaving the van unattended had since lost his job. Chapman, of
Rosedale Gardens, Belton, near Yarmouth, admitted taking a Securicor van and
stealing £9,239.50 on October 18. He was given a 12-month jail sentence
suspended for a year and ordered to do 200 hours unpaid work. Guy Ayers,
mitigating, said it was an unusual set of circumstances. “It was purely
opportunistic. He saw the van left in this way and thought it was careless and
took advantage of that particular driver's way of working.” He said Chapman was
genuinely sorry that the guard had lost his job. Chapman who was of previous
good character was unlikely to re-offending, Mr Ayers added.
August 12, 2006 Daily Telegraph
INDIA'S biggest private airline Jet Airways would suspend a British employee
arrested in London over an alleged plot to blow up US airliners, it said today.
"(Asmin) Tariq is being suspended pending a full investigation, having not
reported for duty for the past couple of days," an airline statement said. Tariq,
a Jet security employee, was among 24 people arrested in Britain earlier this
week over the alleged plot to use suicide bombers with explosives to blow US
airliners out of the sky. One person was later freed. Jet said Tariq, who holds
a British passport, was transferred to Jet in March from global security group
G4S - previously called Securicor - after the airline ended its contract with
the company. Jet, which flies to London and other international destinations as
well as serving Indian domestic routes, said under British employment law, it
had been obliged to take on employees working for G4S before the contract ended.
July 15, 2006 Preston Today
Police have launched a manhunt after a rapist from Preston prison escaped on
his way to court. Mustafa Ismail, 35, was being taken from HMP Preston to the
Manchester Asylum and Immigration Tribunal Court when he escaped from the Group
4 Securicor vehicle. Detectives are appealing to the public for information
about Ismail but warning not to approach him. The Somalian was at the end of a
five year sentence for rape. He was on remand at HMP Preston pending a decision
over his deportation. The hearing he was due to attend was to hear his
application for asylum in the UK. Police have described him as a black man with
black hair and brown eyes, about 6ft (1.8m) tall and of slim build. He was
travelling in an escort van when he escaped near the Asylum and Immigration
Tribunal Court in Manchester's Piccadilly, at about 11.30am on Thursday. It is
believed he was being handcuffed when he pushed over one of the guards and fled
on foot. A Home Office spokeswoman said: "We can confirm that on 13 July, at
approximately 11.15am, an immigration detainee escaped from our care at
Manchester Asylum and Tribunal Court. "Greater Manchester Police were informed
and we are working closely with them to ensure the apprehension of the detainee.
"The incident will be fully investigated and any necessary action will be taken
in conjunction with the Home Office." Group 4 guards were trying to handcuff
Ismail when he fled. They took chase but were unable to catch him. Nobody was
injured. CCTV footage from the van is now being examined, as well as cameras
from the local vicinity.
May 23, 2006 The Mirror
IN THE latest major Home Office blunder, 2,700 innocent people were branded as
criminals. They were labelled robbers, thieves and sex offenders because their
names and dates of birth matched those of convicted criminals. As a result, many
were refused jobs, turned down for university or threatened with the sack. The
shambles was the fault of the Home Office Criminal Records Bureau, which is
managed by private-sector IT firm Capita. Unions say the increasing involvement
of private firms in government departments will lead to more mistakes. A Unison
spokesman said yesterday: "So many different parts of our public services are in
disarray, and privatisation has played a big part in this. "There's a conflict
between the motivations of private companies and their clients, the government.
For private firms there's a pressing need to be competitive and deliver profits
to the shareholder. Prison security COMPANY: Group 4 RESPONSIBLE for a catalogue
of blunders, including allowing seven prisoners to escape while ferrying them
between prison and court in the East Midlands and Yorkshire in 1993. In the same
year, a prisoner fled Group 4 custody at a Hull court. Two years ago, killer
Gordon Topen escaped from HMP Rye Hill. Now known as Group 4 Securicor, it
detains and escorts asylum seekers, and made a profit of £254million last year.
May 19, 2006 The Mirror
A WHISTLEBLOWER last night claimed the UK's deportation system is a
shambolic failure that does nothing to ease our spiralling immigration crisis.
The Group 4 Securicor officer, who escorts deportees back to their home country,
insists an amazing 6 in 10 efforts end in failure. He says many manage to get
sent back to UK detention centres by harming themselves or their children on the
way to the airport. Others cause such uproar on the plane that pilots insist
they are removed. In the worst cases private jets allegedly have to be charted
at vast expense to get them home. And the officer claims it will take 23 years
to clear out huge backlog of illegal immigrants. He said: "It's about time
people knew what a state the system is in. We have a 60 percent cancellation
rate on deportations and it's getting worse. "The deportees will use every trick
in the book to avoid getting kicked out. The men will kick and spit and scream
that they have HIV. The officer said many corrupt officials in foreign countries
refuse to let the deportees in - unless they get a large backhander. He said:
"We are often going to banana republics where the authorities will say they
don't have the right paperwork or deny the deportee is from their country. Then
they ask us for bribes." The officer claimed he and his colleagues often have no
choice but to pay the backhander with company cash or credit cards that are
supposed to be used for expenses. He added: "Although it's not our money, we try
and keep the price down as we resent paying bribes." The whistleblower is a
Detention Custody Officer with Group 4 Securicor, which has the Home Office
contract to run detention centres and escort failed asylum seekers. He is from
the West Midlands but works at Group 4's Overseas Escorting headquarters in
Crawley, West Sussex. His duties include collecting failed asylum seekers from
UK detention centres and escorting them home. He claims that for high-profile or
troublesome deportees, Group 4 Securicor charters a private jet to fly them home
- at a rate of up to £1,500-an-hour. The officer said: "It's a shocking waste of
taxpayers' money. But the bosses say it's the only way." According to a 2005
National Audit Office report, the average cost of deporting an illegal immigrant
is £11,000 per person. Group 4 Securicor last night denied company money was
used to pay bribes. A spokesman said: "We provide credit cards and petty cash to
cover incidental expenses. We deny paying bribes." The company said the
whistleblower's claims of a 60 percent failure rate were false, saying "Less
than one per cent of our removals result in immigration detainees being returned
to the UK." The firm refused to reveal how many deportees fail to leave the UK.
The Home Office admitted chartering flights "when economical and efficient to do
so". The spokesman added: "We strongly refute these allegations and do not
recognise the figures being quoted."
July 9, 2005
Here is a story about your taxes at work. It concerns a company called GSL
(Australia) Pty Ltd, previously known as Group 4 Correction Services, a wholly
owned subsidiary of the British security company Group 4 Securitas, whose core
business includes running prisons. GSL's parent has merged twice in the past
five years. The second time was a year ago, with a British-based multinational
called Securicor to create "one of the largest security companies in the
world, with 340,000 employees in 108 countries", according to GSL's
website. On
July 13, 2004, GSL was sold, for $500 million, as a stand-alone company to
"two of Europe's leading private equity companies, Englefield Capital and
Electra Partners Europe". The GSL website says GSL has 8000 employees
globally, including 1064 in Australia. A
year earlier, on August 27, 2003, GSL signed a contract with the Australian
Government's Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs
to take over the operation of all its mainland "immigration detention
facilities". The contract runs for four years, with a government option for
another three years. The
cost to taxpayers: $90 million a year. That
is, $90 million "not including overheads and contract administration",
according to the Auditor-General, whose office has just investigated the
Immigration Department's management of the GSL contract. What do taxpayers get
for their $90 million? Well,
the first thing they get is a bill for another $30 million, which is what the
Audit Office found it now costs the department in annual overheads to administer
the contract. These costs have gone up at the same time as the number of
detainees has gone down. In 2003-04 administration costs totalled $20 million,
while in the year just ended June 30 they were "projected to reach $30
million". The
number of detainees, as at June 29, was 844. Do your sums on a total cost of
$120 million and you'll find the detention of each and every detainee cost
taxpayers an average $142,000 throughout 2004-05. Perhaps this is why GSL
Australia's managing director, Peter Olszak, is quoted on the company website as
"expressing confidence 'we will continue to go from strength to
strength'." The Audit Office, in its report released this week,
says the Immigration Department stated it funded $120.5 million in 2004-05 to
provide "lawful, appropriate, humane and efficient detention of unlawful
non-citizens". It also found the department's "internal monitoring and
reporting arrangements" neither defined nor measured "lawful,
appropriate, humane or efficient detention". The
report's overall conclusion, in part: "The contract does not establish
clear expectations for the level and quality of services delivered, mechanisms
to protect the Commonwealth's interests are not clear, and there is insufficient
information about the quality of services and their costs to allow a
value-for-money calculation." All
of which means what? Labor's
Sharon Grierson, deputy chairwoman of Parliament's public accounts and audit
committee, was the only MP to respond to the Audit Office report. Grierson said
in a statement on Thursday: "The department has no idea what is going on
inside detention centres. The last thing we should do is assume anything about
these centres, given the culture of complacency and the lack of proper review.
The ANAO report makes it clear there is simply no way of knowing whether the
Commonwealth is receiving value for money or, more importantly, whether the
needs of detainees are being met. The department simply shuts its eyes and hopes
for the best. DIMIA has absolutely no idea if (or to what extent) it is insured
for incidents at detention centres, why the cost of detention is rising even
while the number of detainees is falling, or even what assets and equipment it
owns in these centres." A
lot of "don't knows" for $120 million.
June
30, 2005 The Statesman
Britain’s asylum policy came under renewed scrutiny on Monday as dozens of
Zimbabweans staged a hunger strike in protest at their imminent deportation and
Kurdish Turks mourned a teenage detainee who has killed himself. The Archbishop
of Canterbury and former Labour leader Lord Kinnock joined protests over the
decision to send failed asylum-seekers back to Robert Mugabe’s regime. Dr
Rowan Williams said it would be “deeply immoral” to send failed claimants
back to a country where they could face persecution and torture. Lord Kinnock
said it would be better to let “a couple of dozen” unjustified claimants
remain in Britain than risk sending back people who needed protection.
Zimbabweans at the Campsfield detention centre in Oxfordshire said they had been
told the Government has delayed further deportations for two weeks, which would
forestall the embarrassing prospect of Tony Blair hosting the G8 summit that
will focus on the plight of Africa while dozens of Africans are in Britain on
hunger strike at his government’s policy.
May 30, 2005 Financial
Times
The government is reviewing the future role of the
private sector in the Prison Service, while putting on hold further building
under the private finance initiative. The rethink was signalled last week when
Charles Clarke, home secretary, decided to postpone until the autumn plans to
privatise the first cluster of three state-run prisons. Although the private
sector has built and run prisons under PFI, these would have been the first
group of older prisons to be taken over by independent companies. The decision
is part of a deal reached with the Prison Officers' Association and commits the
union to helping to improve standards at the three prisons on the Isle of
Sheppey, Kent, which together hold 2,000 men. The prisons - Elmley, Standford
Hill and Swaleside - were earmarked in March for "market testing",
under which private companies were to be invited to compete with the public
sector to run them. Group 4, one of the bigger companies involved in the prison
sector, said it was "disappointed" by last week's decision. The
company suspects that the decision reflects an unresolved process of change
within the sector following the creation last year of the National Offender
Management Service to run prison and probation services. According to a report
published last January by the Prison Reform Trust, despite the dramatic increase
in the role of the private sector in the Prison Service, private companies are
no better at running prisons than are their public sector counterparts. An
estimated 10 per cent of the record prison population in England and Wales of
76,035 are held in private prisons, making the UK the most privatised prison
system in Europe. Of the 139 prisons, nine have been built and are being run by
private companies under PFI contracts.
April 9, 2005 The
Guardian
Security firms involved in the deportation of failed
asylum seekers are facing more and more claims of intimidation and assault.
Group 4/Global Solutions Ltd (GSL) topped the league table of complaints by
asylum seekers and their lawyers. Campaigners who studied 35 complaints now
being pursued by lawyers revealed GSL was involved in 30% of cases. GSL, which
deals with by far the majority of deportees in Britain, recently won a 10-year
Home Office contract to run Bicester Accommodation Centre for asylum seekers.
The firm was criticised last month after the broadcast of the BBC documentary
Asylum Undercover, which contained claims of abuse by GSL guards. Most of the
alleged assaults analysed involve incidents on the way to or at airports. Most
concern incidents resulting in cuts, bruises and swelling, although deportees
have complained of head injuries, damaged nerves, and sexual assault.
March 31, 2005 IRR
News
Recent unannounced inspections of centres used to hold asylum seekers in transit
to detention centres and to ports for deportation have found that no centre
meets the minimum requirements in relation to child protection. Officials
carried out their first (unannounced) inspections into 'holding' centres for
asylum seekers between June and October 2004. The holding centres, all run by
private company GSL Ltd, (formerly Group 4) were: Communications House (Old
Street, London), Lunar House (Croydon), Electric House (Croydon) and Dallas
Court (Manchester). The report states that 'all four holding centres had
inadequate provision for childcare and child protection. None had a child
protection policy in place, and staff likely to be in contact with children had
not undergone enhanced Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks.' At Lunar House the
inspection team reported that they 'spoke to one woman detainee with a
two-year-old child during the mid-afternoon. She and the child had been in other
areas of the building since 8am that morning. Neither she nor her child had been
offered anything to eat during that time and had to wait for relocation to a
residential centre that evening.' They found that this was 'unacceptable'. At
Dallas Court, the team found that 'a weekend shift recently complained when they
discovered a young woman in the holding room who had miscarried a few days
previously. She had been collected from a hospital following psychiatric
referral, had not eaten for three days and had to be helped to and from the van.
She was subject to a live F2052SH self-harm monitoring form because she kept
asking for her baby and said she wanted to die. Having been delivered to the
holding room in the morning, she was not due to be collected by another vehicle
until more than six hours later.' For the first time it emerged that other
private contractors (unnamed in this report) are being used to move asylum
seekers - though GSL Ltd remains responsible for the four holding centres
inspected here. The inspection teams also found a worrying 'absence of
operational or independent oversight, compared to other immigration detention
facilities. There was no Independent Monitoring Board, and no on-site monitor to
provide daily oversight of service provision, as there is in immigration removal
centres (IRCs). Senior Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) staff
visited only occasionally, and, with the exception of Dallas Court, had little
involvement with the centres.'
January
13, 2005 PR Newswire
The Wackenhut Corporation, the U.S.-based division of the large U.K. and
European security contractor, Group 4 Securicor, has apparently persuaded the
U.S. National Labor Relations Board ["NLRB"] to pursue allies of
Protects USA. Late last week, the NLRB notified Protects USA ally at the
non-profit Prewitt Organizing Fund ["POF"] a formal investigation was
under way. "They are requesting private information on activists, allies
and funding. It's clearly a continuation of G4-Wackenhut's witch hunt for
scapegoats," says Protects USA spokesperson Adam Wilson. "Protects USA
and POF are not parties in any matter before the NLRB. We will notify the NLRB
that the request will be taken under advisement as it comes in tandem with the
intimidation lawsuit G4/Wackenhut filed last month to silence Protects
USA," said Wilson. Since last summer, Protects USA and similar groups
[Denver PROTECTS, New York/New Jersey PROTECTS, California PROOFERS,
Albuquerque-based BOCAS] have conducted more than 200 peaceful public
information events in 14 states, aimed at educating the public about the current
condition of homeland security. U.K.-based G4/Wackenhut filed a lawsuit in
federal court on December 6 to silence its U.S.-based critics and stop public
advocacy conducted by Protects USA. Protects USA, a citizen-based homeland
security advocacy project, seeks to educate the public on the perils of handing
over the security of our most sensitive sites to private profiteers with spotty
records or worse.
April 25, 2004
Police may charge private security company Group 4 tens of thousands of
pounds after an 11-day hunt to recapture a dangerous escaped murderer.
Gordon Topen, who was 12 years into a life sentence for killing a businessman,
broke free from two Group 4 security officer sat Walsgrave Hospital, Coventry,
on Good Friday. West Midlands Police launched a huge manhunt for the
murderer - who had been in hospital for a blood transfusion - involving
officers, sniffer dogs and helicopters but he evaded capture. More than 20
Coventry detectives spent 11 days in a nationwide operation to catch the killer
who, it was feared, could try to hunt down the Midland ex-girlfriend whose
evidence put him behind bars. He was finally snared when officers in
London discovered Topen holed up in a friend’s house following a
tip-off. Now the Sunday Mercury understands that West Midlands Police may
hit Group 4 with a bill for the costs of the manhunt if it believes the security
firm was negligent in the escape. (Sunday Mercury)
MANCHESTER'S new £30m
court is at the centre of a new storm after dozens of prisoners were hours late
arriving from their cells. Furious lawyers sat around for up to three
hours yesterday waiting for their clients to arrive from police stations,
including Bootle Street less than a mile away. GSL, the private security
firm that ferries prisoners to the court, blamed "logistical problems"
and has apologised to court authorities. It is the latest in a string of
problems at the court since it opened in May. Around 40 people were
due to be moved from holding cells in Manchester to the court before 10am
yesterday, in time for morning hearings. Less than half were delivered on
time and more were dropped off at 11am and 11.45am. Lawyers were still waiting
for at least eight clients at 12.30pm. GSL, part of Group 4, said the final
transfer was made at 12.45pm. Court bosses have already threatened to fine
GSL for previous failures to get prisoners into court on time. (Manchester
Online)
September 16, 2003
THE man charged with bringing about a dramatic improvement at Liverpool Prison
has left to join the private sector. John Smith was governor at the
troubled Walton jail for just six months and has now joined the board of
directors at Premier Prisons. After he quit on Thursday, Prison Service
chiefs moved quickly to replace Mr Smith with Liverpool Prison's first female
governor. Catherine James took up her new post yesterday and is now
charged with providing a much improved service at the jail which faces being
privatised after it was branded as a "failing" operation earlier this
year. Ms James has previously been employed at Liverpool Prison (Walton)
in a role as governor with responsibility for health care before leaving to take
up a post at Stoke Heath Young Offenders Institute. When John Smith became
governor in April he pledged to stave off privatisation. Last night, one
prison officer told the Daily Post: "The first we knew about the governor
leaving was when we were called into a meeting on Friday. "We were
all stunned because we hadn't heard anything beforehand. "The fact
that he was allowed to leave with immediate effect and there was already someone
ready to come in and replace him seems a bit strange though. "It is
all a bit ironic because when he took the job Smith told us that he was
desperate to keep Liverpool, and all prisons, out of the private sector and yet
he has now gone to work for Premier Prisons which has just opened a new private
sector prison in Peterborough." A spokesman for Premier Prisons said:
"John Smith is a very able governor and prison manager and since we are
looking to strengthen our corporate office he comes as an excellent addition to
our team. "We have been strengthening from within but we have also
been looking to bring someone in with outside experience. John gave his notice
in to the Prison Service and we are delighted he has decided to join
us." Last night the Home Office was keeping tight-lipped about the
reasons for Mr Smith leaving only to stress that his departure had nothing to do
with an impending report on the prison's performance. Four Prison Service
troubleshooters have been based at Walton for the last six months and are due to
report back to the Home Office next Monday on how the regime meets security and
safety targets and how offenders are resettled in the community after
release. If the report says the prison is still failing it could be
contracted out, without an in-house bid, in which case management of the jail
would pass to the private sector. A spokesman for the Home Office said:
"I can confirm that John Smith has left Liverpool Prison with immediate
effect. "He has been replaced by Catherine James who has already
taken up her position. The performance report is due to be presented next week
but this is not connected to Mr Smith's departure in any way."
Liverpool Prison has the largest prison population in Europe. It houses 1,450
inmates - 260 more that it is supposed to and only 30 short of its
capacity. It is understood more than 200 prisoners are being kept two to a
single cell and inmates are only being let out of their cells for six hours a
week. GIVEN SIX MONTHS TO IMPROVE LIVERPOOL Prison began a performance
testing process in April after it was branded a "failing centre" and
was given six months to improve or be sold off to the private sector. In
May, the Chief Inspector of Prisons, Ann Owers, said the regime was
"unacceptable" and found cockroach infestations, broken windows and
poor hygiene. At the time, the prison's new management team, led by
trouble-shooting governor John Smith, was given until September 22 to put
together a recovery plan. Mr Smith (pictured), who had the reputation of
being a reformer, keen on the positive social modelling of prisoners, was
brought in from Manchester's tough Strangeways jail where he cracked down on
drug abuse and unlocked cells for 12 hours a day. The married
father-of-two pledged to spend 80pc of his time creating a programme to improve
standards at the Victorian prison which houses almost 1,500 inmates.
Day-to-day running of the jail was placed in the hands of his deputy governor,
Clive Chatterton, with a series of instant changes made for the prisoners
including more time out of the cells, a bigger range of education and
rehabilitation programmes and more sport and physical exercise. The
success of these changes will be judged shortly with the prison due to be
inspected again in October and a decision on the jail's future will be made in
December. (Cheshire Online)
Hassockfield Secure Training Centre
Doncaster, England
Group 4 (formerly
Serco, formerly run by
Wackenhut)
November 22, 2011 The Guardian
Serious injuries or other life-threatening warning signs have been detected on
285 occasions when children have been physically restrained in privately run
jails over the past five years, according to Ministry of Justice figures. The
figure reflects the number of "exception reports" submitted by the four
privately run secure training centres to the youth justice board since 2006. The
warning signs triggering an exception report include struggling to breathe,
nausea, vomiting, limpness and abnormal redness to the face. Serious injuries
are classified as those requiring hospitalisation and include serious cuts,
fractures, concussion, loss of consciousness and damage to internal organs. The
MoJ figures, which have been disclosed for the first time, show that there were
61 such exception reports made last year. There have been 29 so far in the first
10 months of this year. Their disclosure comes as a two-day High Court challenge
is due to get underway over the MoJ's refusal to identify and trace hundreds of
children who have been unlawfully restrained in the privately run child jails
using techniques that have since been banned. Children's rights campaigners
believe they should be entitled to compensation. The Children's Rights Alliance
for England (Crae) has brought the case challenging the justice secretary, Ken
Clarke's, refusal to contact former detainees dating back to 1998, when the
first secure training centre opened. The legal challenge follows a second
inquest earlier this year into the death of 14-year-old Adam Rickwood, who was
found hanging in his room at Hassockfield Secure Training Centre, where he was
on remand in 2006. It concluded there was a serious system failure which gave
rise to an unlawful regime at the child jail. The use of several "distraction"
restraint techniques, that involved inflicting pain with a severe blow to the
nose or ribs, or by pulling back a child's thumb, were banned in 2008. The use
of physical restraint techniques to control teenagers simply for the purposes of
"good order and discipline" was also ruled unlawful by the court of appeal.
Carolyne Willow, Crae's national co-ordinator, said their lawyers will argue
there had been a chronic failure by the authorities to protect vulnerable
children over many years. "It was not children's responsibility to know about,
challenge and stop unlawful and abusive treatment," said Willow, adding there
were potentially thousands of former detainees who should now be contacted.
"Children in custody are among the most disadvantaged in society and they were
held in closed institutions where unlawful restraint was routine and ordinary.
It was the state, and the private contractors, who were duty-bound to protect
the welfare and rights of vulnerable children." She said that government
officials now had a duty to notify potential victims that their rights had been
infringed. The abuses should no longer remain hidden and unchallenged. The
security company, G4S, which operates three of the four child jails is also
joining the case as an 'interested party'.
April 25, 2011 The Independent
Juveniles in private prisons are at risk of serious injury or death through the
use of illegal restraints, according to research by the penal reform charity the
Howard League. Some privately run Secure Training Centres (STC) are using
unlawful restraints which have resulted in bruising, broken bones and a number
of deaths of under 18s in penal custody, according to researchers. The report
from Howard League lawyers documents the daily violence the juveniles have faced
while they have been in custody. A 15-year-old boy in a STC said in evidence
given to a Howard League lawyer: "I had bruised shoulders from when one of the
staff dragged me across the room and shoved me into the wall. I had bruising on
my back from where I was slammed into the wall in my cell." The report reveals
that there were 142 injuries to children recorded as a result of the restraint
of boys in prisons between April 2008 and March 2009. Lord Carlile of Berriew QC
is holding a series of public hearings in the House of Lords into the policies
and practices of using force on children in custody. In an independent inquiry
into the use of physical restraint in 2006, Lord Carlile recommended that it
should never be used as punishment or to secure compliance. He added that the
infliction of pain was not acceptable and may be unlawful. The report, Twisted:
the Use of Force on Children in Custody, comes after the death of 14-year-old
Adam Rickwood who was found hanging in his cell in 2004 after being restrained
by staff at Hassockfield STC in County Durham. At a second inquest into his
death, held at Easington earlier this year, a jury found that the unlawful use
of force by staff had contributed to it. A secret manual published by the
Ministry of Justice that was publicly disclosed after legal action in 2010 shows
that staff were authorised to use pain-inflicting distraction techniques on the
thumbs, ribs and noses of children. According to the Youth Justice Board, 6,904
incidents of restraint were reported between 2009-10 in England and Wales, 257
of which resulted in injury. However, the report highlights that statistics are
likely to underestimate the extent to which physical restraint is used, as not
all incidents are recorded. Frances Crook, director of the Howard League, said:
"These shadowy private companies who profit from children being locked up have
disguised their methods of painful holds on children for years. It is time we
revealed what is really happening."
February 15, 2011 The Guardian
A high court challenge has been launched over the Ministry of Justice's refusal
to identify hundreds of children who have been unlawfully restrained in
privately run child jails using techniques that have since been banned. The
Children's Rights Alliance for England (Crae) has applied for a judicial review
of the refusal by the justice secretary, Ken Clarke, to identify and contact
children who may have been unlawfully restrained in the privately run secure
training centres. The legal battle follows the second inquest two weeks ago into
the death of 14-year-old Adam Rickwood, found hanging in his room at
Hassockfield secure training centre where he was on remand in 2006. The inquest
concluded that there was a serious system failure which gave rise to an unlawful
regime at the jail. The use of several "distraction'' restraint techniques,
which involve inflicting pain with a severe blow to the nose or ribs, or by
pulling back a child's thumb, were first suspended in 2007 before being banned
in 2008. The use of physical restraint to control teenagers in child jails for
the purposes of "good order and discipline" was also ruled to be unlawful by the
court of appeal in the same year. Carolyne Willow of Crae said she believed that
there may be hundreds, if not thousands, of children who have been unlawfully
restrained in secure training centres since they first opened in 1998.
January 11, 2011 Evening-Chronicle
GUARDS at a privately-run young people’s unit acted illegally leading up to a
teenager’s prison cell suicide, an inquest heard. Tragic Adam Rickwood was found
hanging just hours after he was mistreated by warders. His mother Carol Pounder,
told jurors she would be “locked up” if she had behaved towards her son the way
authorities had in the moments leading up to his death. At a second hearing into
the tragedy, following a High Court appeal, Durham’s Assistant Deputy Coroner
Jeremy Freedman revealed previous jurors were not informed prison staff had used
unorthodox methods to restrain Adam and were acting “unlawfully and illegally”
on the evening of his death on August 9, 2004. The 14-year-old, from Burnley,
was found hanged by his shoelaces in his cell by staff at the Serco-run
Hassockfield secure training centre in Consett, while on remand for an alleged
wounding charge. Hours before his death, at 6pm, he was involved in an
altercation with staff who ordered him to return to his cell from the social
area he was in. The order came after a note was passed to him by another inmate
which contained “unflattering remarks” about a female member of staff. When Adam
refused to go back to his cell and instead sat on the floor in the communal
area, back-up was called and he was physically removed. Four officers restrained
him – two holding his arms, one holding his head and one holding his legs. Adam
was placed in his cell face down and, because the officer holding his head
feared Adam was trying to bite his fingers, he employed a “nose distraction
method” to control Adam’s behaviour – a painful manoeuvre which left his nose
swollen and bruised. Mr Freedman, who is leading the second inquest into his
death, said the previous jury had not been told “three important things”. He
said: “When they removed Adam from the free association area, in these
circumstances, it was unlawful and illegal. “Second, they weren’t told that the
use of Physical Control in Care in taking him into his cell in these
circumstances was, too, unlawful. “And thirdly, they weren’t told that the use
of the nose distraction technique was in any circumstances unlawful and
illegal.”
July 18, 2010 AP
Brutal techniques to restrain children held in private prisons have been made
public after mounting pressure from children's rights groups. The Observer
disclosed details of the techniques used to train staff in restraining young
offenders in the country's four privately-run secure training centres. The
secret manual, Physical Control in Care, was created by the HM Prison Service
and approved by the Department of Justice in 2005. The government's Youth
Justice Board (YJB) had initially fought the Information Commissioner's order to
hand over the documents. When the Children's Rights Alliance (CRAE) called on
the Justice Secretary to hold an independent judicial inquiry, YJB finally
relented. The Observer revealed that control measures authorised for staff to
use include "an inverted knuckle into the trainee's sternum and drive inward and
upward," "alternate elbow strikes to the young person's ribs until a release is
achieved," and "drive straight fingers into the young person's face, and then
quickly drive the straightened fingers of the same hand downwards into the young
person's groin area." The manual went so far as to warn staff that some
techniques risk a "fracture to the skull" and "temporary or permanent blindness
caused by rupture to eyeball or detached retina." One passage states in regard
to administering a head-hold that "if breathing is compromised the situation
ceases to be a restraint and becomes a medical emergency." Carolyne Willow,
CRAE's national co-ordinator stated, "Until now, we've seen a compulsive
reliance on secrecy and an absolute failure to face up publicly to the
disgraceful and unlawful treatment of children the State officially describes as
vulnerable." The campaign to make the information public came after the deaths
of two children, Gareth Myatt, 15, and Adam Rickwood, 14, who died in the
custody of Rainsbrook and Hassockfield secure training centres in 2004.
March 8, 2008 The Northern Echo
BRUTAL restraint techniques used before the suicide of a 14-year-old boy at a
North-East secure unit are illegal and must be banned, MPs and peers will demand
today. In a damning report, the Joint Human Rights Committee condemns the "state
sanctioned infliction of pain against children" as young as 12, who misbehave in
private prisons. The restraint techniques include hitting a child's nose from
underneath - the restraint method used on Adam Rickwood by staff at the
Serco-run Hassockfield Secure Training Centre, near Consett, County Durham. Six
hours later, on August 9, 2004, Adam, from Burnley, Lancashire, became the
youngest person to die in custody in Britain when he hanged himself from a
curtain rail, using his shoelaces. Last night, Adam's mother, Carol Pounder,
welcomed the report and said the treatment her son received should never have
been allowed to take place. She said: "Sometimes you need to restrain a child to
protect them from themselves, but there is a difference between restraining a
child and beating a child. "What gives them the right to do these things to our
children? If I had punched Adam in the nose and caused pain and bleeding at
home, I would be taken to court. But because it happens behind closed doors
nobody knows. "The best thing this Government could do is withdraw this
distraction technique, not just put a suspension on it." Describing the
so-called distraction techniques as unlawful under international human rights
laws, the committee warns they have had "tragic results". Andrew Dismore, the
committee's Labour chairman, said: "What is, in effect, state-sanctioned
infliction of pain against children to ensure good order and discipline should
not continue. "It must be absolutely clear that inflicting pain on children is
never justified and the use of force is an absolute last resort, for use only
when all alternatives have been demonstrably exhausted." The committee also
condemns the Government for refusing to release the staff manual for restraining
children, which means the full details of the hold techniques remain secret. As
well as "nose distraction" - the upward chop to the septum used against Adam -
the techniques include the "double basket", where the arms are crossed and held
behind the back. In December, the Government agreed to suspend the use of both
techniques after medical advice. Today's report demands their permanent removal
from the manual. The report includes an extract from a note found in Adam's room
after his death. The 14-year-old wrote: "When I calmed down, I asked them why
they hit me in the nose and jumped on me. "They said it was because I wouldn't
go in my room, so I said what gives them the right to hit a 14-year-old child in
the nose, and they said it was restraint." The inquest into his death returned a
verdict of suicide. It heard the officer who used the nose distraction technique
on the boy later noticed it had drawn blood. The director of the Howard League
for Penal Reform, Francis Crook, said last night he was very pleased with the
committee's opposition to the use of painful restraint. He said: "Treatment that
would see a parent or teacher in front of social services is not only allowed in
these child jails but positively encouraged by recent rule changes." A
spokeswoman for the Ministry of Justice said: "Force is only ever used as a last
resort. "However, some young people in secure training centres can be very
violent and staff need appropriate and effective methods to contain and resolve
dangerous situations. "The Youth Justice Board's Code of Practice on behaviour
management makes it explicit that restrictive physical interventions must only
be used as a last resort." Serco, which runs the centre, declined to comment.
A flagship "jail" for young boys faces closure after The Mirror
revealed it has been rocked by violence, vandalism and vicious attacks on staff.
Offenders as young as 12 are running riot. There are three serious incidents a
day and more than 150 last month alone, with staff in riot gear deployed on
several occasions. Now the Home Office has drawn up plans to close Hassockfield
secure training centre in Consett, Co Durham, after more than half the staff
quit for fear of attack. Premier Prison Services, the private firm running it,
is set to lose fulfill its contract. (The Mirror)
June 6, 2002
TWO OF the world's
biggest security companies could find themselves in court
in a row over their joint venture to run privatised prisons and immigration
centres.
UK-based Serco wants to buy out the half of Premier Custodial Group
owned by
America's Wackenhut Corrections Corporation. But the US company refuses to
sell and is ready to go to court to defend the right to retain its 50 per
cent stake in PCG.
The
row illustrates the growing demand for prisons run by private companies,
despite the controversy they attract.
PCG
manages four jails, including Doncaster, one combined prison and youth
offenders' institution and a centre for asylum seekers near Glasgow.
Serco
has wanted control of the business since rival Group4 Falck took a 57
per cent stake in WCC, listed on the New York Stock Exchange, last month.
Group4
is a strong rival to Serco in this country, running three prisons and
three immigration centres, including Yarl's Wood, Bedfordshire, which was
badly damaged by fire this year. (The Express)
Hardy
House
Isle of Portland, Dorset
January 29, 2003
A FORMER naval barracks was badly damaged by fire minutes after the end of an
angry public meeting to oppose plans to use it to hold up to 750
asylum-seekers. Hardy House, a derelict, ten-story block on the Isle of
Portland, Dorset, suffered extensive damage to one floor. The attack
followed a warning by David Blunkett, the Home Secretary, that whipping up fears
about asylum-seekers could lead to a breakdown in community relations. The
building is now owned by a property company, Comer Homes, which bought it from
the Ministry of Defense for 30 million. The company recently applied for
planning permission to convert it to 350 luxury flats. Portland has been
in uproar since it was disclosed ten days ago that the Home Office is in
negotiations with t he developers to use the building as a centre for up to
750-asylum-seekers who would be housed there while their applications to stay in
Britain are processed. (Times Online)
Harmondsworth
Detention Centre, London, England
GEO Group (formerly run by
Kalyx, UK Detention Services, AKA
Sodexho)
August 5, 2011 The Guardian
Separate investigations into three deaths in immigration removal centres (IRC)
in the past month have been launched by the police, amid growing concern about
the treatment of detainees. The spate of deaths has caused alarm among critics
of the government's detention policy, who warn that the system is at "breaking
point" with poor healthcare putting people's lives at risk. Two men died from
suspected heart attacks at Colnbrook near Heathrow airport and the third killed
himself at the Campsfield House detention centre in Oxfordshire on Tuesday. John
McDonnell, Labour MP for Hayes and Harlington, who has two detention centres
including Colnbrook in his constituency, said he feared there would be more
deaths as the system struggled to cope with the number of people being detained.
"The government is now detaining people on such a scale that the existing
services are swamped," he said. "It is inevitable if we put the services under
such relentless strain that there will be more deaths as a result … we are
dealing with people who are extremely stressed and extremely vulnerable and the
services are not able to cope and not able to guarantee their safety." The first
man who died was Muhammad Shukat, 47, a Pakistani immigration detainee who
collapsed at around 6am on 2 July. His roommate Abdul Khan says that in the
hours before he died Shukat was groaning in agony, had very bad chest pains and
was sweating profusely. Khan, 19, from Afghanistan, said he began raising the
alarm around 6am and pressed the emergency button in the room 10 times in a
frantic effort to get help. Khan claimed that on three occasions members of the
centre's nursing team entered the room and found Shukat on the floor where he
had collapsed. Khan said they put him back into bed, took his temperature and
some medicine was administered, but did not call emergency assistance
immediately. According to Khan, the nurses initially said that Shukat could go
to see the centre's doctor at 8am. According to the London Ambulance Service,
Colnbrook staff called an ambulance just before 7.20am. Attempts were made to
resuscitate Shukat, but he was pronounced dead on arrival at Hillingdon
Hospital. A postmortem found the provisional cause of death to be coronary heart
disease. Shukat's body has been returned to Pakistan and his family are
understood to have no concerns about the medical treatment he received. The
second man to die at Colnbrook has not yet been named. According to the
Metropolitan police he was 35 and was found dead in his cell at 10.30am last
Sunday. London Ambulance Service officials pronounced him dead at the scene. "A
postmortem held on 1 August found the cause of death to be a ruptured aorta. The
death is being treated as unexplained," said a police spokesman. Colnbrook IRC
is managed by Serco. In a statement to detainees about Shukat's death, deputy
director at Colnbrook, Jenni Halliday, described her "deep regret" and extended
her condolences. In a statement to detainees about the second Colnbrook death,
Serco's contract manager, Michael Guy, informed detainees that a resident in the
short-term holding facility had died and that the death was thought to be from
natural causes. On Tuesday, a 35-year-old man hanged himself in the toilet block
at Campsfield House detention centre in Oxfordshire. A fellow detainee, who
refused to give his name, said the man had been hours away from being deported
and had become very anxious. "He was normally a very quiet person … but the
pressure is too much for people in here." It is understood the man had only been
at the centre for a few days before he died. The Home Office refused to give any
more details saying his extended family had yet to be informed. Emma Ginn, from
the campaign group Medical Justice, said the deaths had heightened concern about
the poor healthcare on offer to those being kept in UK detention centres. "Based
on medical evidence from many hundreds of detainees, Medical Justice has
documented the disturbingly inadequate healthcare provision that often
vulnerable immigration detainees are subjected to in Colnbrook and other
immigration removal centres... [this] combined with the perilous and frightening
conditions of detention, is a lethal cocktail, a disaster waiting to happen."
The UK Border Agency declined to comment on the specific circumstances of each
case. It said the police and the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman always
investigated deaths in immigration detention centres and it would be
inappropriate to comment until these were complete. David Wood, director of
criminality and detention at the UK Border Agency, said all detainees at
immigration removal centres have access to health services seven days a week.
"All detainees are seen by a nurse within two hours of arrival and are given an
opportunity to see a GP within 24 hours," he added. "The health of all detainees
is monitored closely, and the healthcare professionals are required to report
cases where it is considered that a person's health is being affected by
continued detention. "The UK takes its responsibilities seriously, which is why
we consider every case on its individual merits and will continue to offer
protection to those who need it. However, detention is an essential part of our
controls on immigration in the UK." A groundbreaking ruling -- A man with severe
mental illness was unlawfully locked up in a UK detention centre for five months
and subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment, according to a high court
ruling. The man, a 34-year-old Indian national, was detained in Harmondsworth
immigration removal centre between April and September last year. On Friday a
judge ruled that his treatment amounted to a breach of article 3 of the European
convention human rights. The man's lawyer said the ruling – thought to be the
first of its kind – raised wider questions about how the government treats
people with mental illnesses in the immigration and detention system. "The
court's decision that my client suffered inhuman or degrading treatment at a UK
detention facility sends a very loud and clear message to the authorities,"
said. "We would urge the minister to conduct a fundamental review into how
people suffering from mental illness are treated in the immigration detention
estate." The man, referred to as "S" in the ruling, had a history of serious ill
treatment and abuse before arriving in the UK. He served time in prison for
wounding and assault before being transferred to a secure psychiatric hospital
until his discharge in April 2010. Following his release the UK Border Agency
said there was "no evidence" he was mentally ill and he was detained in
Harmondsworth where his health deteriorated and he began to have psychotic
episodes and self harm. The high court intervened and he was released on bail.
His lawyers said he had been living with his family since then and had fully
complied with the conditions of bail set by the court. In the ruling judge David
Elvin said: "S's pre-existing mental condition was both triggered and
exacerbated by detention and that involved both a debasement and humiliation of
S since it showed a serious lack of respect for his human dignity. It created a
state in S's mind of real anguish and fear, through his hallucinations, which
led him to self-harm frequently and to behave in a manner which was
humiliating…" A UK Border Agency spokesperson said: "We regularly review our
detention policies and will look at the findings in this case to ensure lessons
are learned. Detention is an essential part of our immigration control but we
recognise the importance of ensuring it remains appropriate on a case by case
basis."
April 4, 2011 The Sun
BRITISH workers at a deportation centre are to be sacked and replaced by
inmates on just £1 an hour. Staff are in uproar at the unit, which cages failed
asylum seekers and foreign prisoners awaiting the boot from the UK. Up to 20
full-time kitchen workers, who earn £300 a week, are to be made redundant under
the plan. Inmates who take over their jobs at Harmondsworth, near London's
Heathrow airport, will earn nothing like the £5.93-an-hour national minimum
wage. One worker at the unit said: "It's a disgrace. They're doing things on the
cheap in a scandalous way. Where are these 20 sacked British staff going to find
jobs in the current climate? "Surely we should be giving priority to British
workers in these troubled times." Another worker added: "Apart from the
sackings, it is wrong to use the inmates as virtual slave labour." Privately-run
Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centre is the biggest deportation unit in
Europe, with 615 inmates. Original contractors Kalyx were replaced in 2009 by
the American private security company, GEO Group. Jonathan Sedgwick, acting
Chief Executive of the Home Office's UK Border Agency, said: "Detainees working
in cleaning and catering roles is common in our detention centres. "It allows us
to keep detainees occupied while arrangements are made to return them. This is
nothing new and has been praised by HM Inspector of Prisons and independent
monitoring boards."
July 31, 2009 Daily Star
BRITISH workers facing the sack at an immigration detention centre say their
jobs are being taken by “illegals” who are being held there. The detainees, who
have no legal rights to work in the UK, have been handed £15-a-week cleaning
jobs. But the real cleaners are among up to 74 workers expected to be made
redundant this month at the Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centre near
Heathrow Airport. The Home Office denied that the cleaners are being replaced by
detainees at a fraction of the cost. But one cleaner said she thought the
Government’s British Jobs for British Workers claim was “a joke”. She added:
“Not only are foreign workers exploiting British employment opportunities, but
now it seems that even failed asylum seekers in detention centres are taking our
jobs.” The Harmondsworth centre was taken over by GEO Group last month. It
houses immigrants who are awaiting deportation, some of whom are failed asylum
seekers or those who have overstayed their visas. The Home Office confirmed none
of them would have a legal right to work in the UK. A GEO Group spokesman said
six cleaners were to be made redundant but declined to comment further. Lin
Homer, chief executive of the UK Border Agency, said: “No staff facing
redundancy at the centre will be replaced by an immigration detainee.” But she
said a recent report had said detainees should be able to do more paid work.
June 29, 2009 News Ticker
The GEO Group, Inc. (NYSE: GEO) ("GEO") announced today that its wholly
owned U.K. subsidiary, GEO UK Ltd., has assumed management functions at the
256-bed Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centre (the "Centre”) located in
London, England. GEO U.K. will manage the Centre under contract with the United
Kingdom Border Agency. The contract for the management and operation of the
Centre will have a term of three years and is expected to generate approximately
$14.0 million in annual revenues for GEO. Additionally, the Centre will be
expanded by 364 beds bringing its capacity to 620 beds when the expansion is
completed in June 2010. Upon completion of the expansion, GEO’s management
contract is expected to generate approximately $19.5 million in annual revenues.
March 17, 2009 Worthing Herald
The Government was wrong not to order an independent inquiry into
allegations of mistreatment at Harmondsworth immigration detention centre in
west London 2006, the Court of Appeal has ruled. But the appeal judges held it
was now too late to hold an effective investigation and the question of whether
the state had breached the human rights of detainees fell to be decided by way
of pending civil damages claims. Human rights group Liberty brought the case
against the Home Office and the managers of the centre, Kalyx Ltd, on behalf of
three detainees who claimed they were subjected to "inhuman or degrading
treatment" during disturbances caused by other detainees at the centre near
Heathrow Airport on November 28 2006. Referred to only as "AM and others", the
detainees allege they were denied food and water for up to 40 hours; locked in
overcrowded, pitch-black rooms flooded with water for more than 24 hours; forced
to urinate and defecate in front of each other; and strip searched in front of
several officers. Their appeal, in which lawyers argued that their alleged
treatment was sufficient to trigger the UK's legal obligation to hold an
official investigation, was upheld by Lord Justices Sedley and Elias, with Lord
Justice Longmore dissenting. Anna Fairclough, legal officer at Liberty, said
after the judgment: "With so many people languishing in immigration detention,
it is shameful that the Home Secretary refused to investigate these very serious
allegations of mistreatment. "The judgment leaves the Government nowhere to hide
should anything of this nature happen again."
July 26, 2007 The Daily Mail
Rioting foreign criminals and failed asylum seekers were fed McDonald's
takeaway meals by prison staff during a £60million orgy of destruction which
wrecked an immigration detention centre. Fearful that the human rights of
inmates would be breached, staff ferried sackfuls of Big Mac meals with fries
and soft drinks from a nearby branch of the fast-food chain. The revelation came
in a damning official report into the riot at Harmondsworth Immigration Removal
Centre near Heathrow Airport last November. More than 500 inmates awaiting
deportation wrecked and burned down much of the site, and it took riot squads
almost two days to regain control. The report also reveals: • Walls and doors in
the centre were so flimsy that inmates kicked them down with ease, especially
after they were soaked by the sprinkler system; • The fire brigade got lost
because there were no signposts to the centre; • CCTV cameras were easy for
rioters to destroy - meaning control room staff had no idea what was going on; •
Increasingly desperate calls to the Prison Service headquarters begging for help
were ignored for an hour. The official Home Office investigation blames the riot
partly on the huge pressure on the centre after last summer's foreign prisoners
scandal. Hundreds of foreign national criminals were rounded up after being
released from Britain's jails without being considered for deportation. Of the
501 men in the detention centre at the time 177 were foreign prisoners awaiting
deportation - a volatile group who had 'nothing to lose'. The riot was triggered
by inmates watching a TV news bulletin reporting criticisms of Harmondsworth
from prison watchdogs. Fires were started and inmates began smashing CCTV
cameras and attacking staff, who were unable to contain the violence. As control
room managers lost their grip, staff were ordered to retreat and seal the gates,
as police arrived to guard the perimeter. Thirteen riot squads entered the
centre next morning but took more than 24 hours to regain control. During the
day a row broke out between senior officials over whether to send food in for
rioters. Those who favoured starving inmates into submission were overruled, as
managers ordered that 'minimum needs of food and drink' must be supplied. "In
the early stages food came from McDonald's," according to the report by senior
civil servant Robert Whalley. Yesterday the Daily Mail tracked down a worker at
the West Drayton branch of McDonald's who recalled Harmondsworth staff placing a
huge order for £3.59 burger meals. He said: "I remember prison officers turning
up and ordering around 100 Big Mac meals with fries and fizzy drinks. For a
couple of hours they kept turning up with big bags, filling them up with meals
and then ferrying them off in Securicor vans and then they'd return for more."
The Home Office was last night unable to provide details of the cost of the
emergency supplies. The cost of dealing with the riot and rebuilding large parts
of Harmondsworth is expected to top £65million. Tory immigration spokesman
Damian Green said: "This situation required a fast response, and all they got
was fast food. "We now know that this dangerous incident happened because the
Government was forced to mix foreign prisoners with failed asylum seekers.
Because of prison overcrowding, this is still going on."
May 20, 2007 Observer
Hunger strikes, rioting and self-harm are now endemic in Britain's biggest
detention centres as detainees become increasingly desperate about living in
what they claim are deteriorating conditions. At Yarl's Wood in Bedfordshire,
more than 100 women are refusing to eat, and there have been recent reports of
major disturbances at Lindholme, South Yorkshire, and at Colnbrook in Middlesex.
Self-harm is particularly acute at Yarl's Wood, which reopened in September 2003
after half of it was gutted by fire during rioting in February 2002. It now
houses hundreds of women, many of whom have attempted to claim asylum in Britain
after fleeing war zones. Amid growing concern over Britain's overstretched
asylum system, the campaign group Liberty will call tomorrow for the Home
Secretary, John Reid, to order a public inquiry into the large-scale riot at
Harmondsworth detention centre in west London last November. If Reid refuses,
the group says that it intends to seek a judicial review of his decision on
behalf of seven detainees it is representing - an unprecedented move that would
see Britain's immigration system placed under scrutiny in the courts.
'Well-documented abuses at Harmondsworth detention centre sparked the
disturbance in November,' said Liberty's legal officer, Alex Gask. 'These men
deserve a public inquiry into the ill-treatment they faced; anything less could
result in legal action.' The deteriorating situation in the detention centres
has sparked a surge in self-harm, according to campaigners. Every other day
detainees harm themselves to such a serious degree that they require medical
treatment, according to the National Coalition of Anti Deportation Campaigns.
Between April 2006 and March 2007 there were 199 attempts to self-harm that
required medical treatment. An investigation last year into conditions at Yarl's
Wood found 70 per cent of women at the centre had reported rape, nearly half had
been detained for more than three months and 57 per cent had no legal
representation. Conditions have not improved, according to campaigners. Assaults
are said to be commonplace. One woman was stripped and thrown naked into a van
taking her to the airport for deportation only for the pilot to refuse to allow
her to fly as she had no clothes. The women also allege staff regularly refer to
them as 'black monkey', 'nigger' and 'bitch'. They claim vital faxes from
solicitors are going missing and information on basic legal rights is being
withheld. Detainees also complain they are given days-old reheated food in which
they have found hair, dirt and maggots. Campaigners are also concerned about
conditions at Harmondsworth, where detainees rioted after being banned from
watching news coverage of a damning report on the centre. The Liberty report, to
be published tomorrow, contains a clutch of testimonies from detainees about the
conditions in Harmondsworth before the riots. One man interviewed for the study
told how he was taken to the centre's medical clinic suffering from a bad back.
'They just abandoned me,' the man said. 'There was no doctor and, when I asked
where the doctor was, the detention officers laughed at me ... One of them
stepped on the hem of my trousers to make me fall over. He then started laughing
and called me a "fucking negro".' Solitary confinement as a punishment for
speaking out at Harmondsworth is common, according to Liberty. 'If we made a
complaint we would be given a warning,' one man known as 'K' told Liberty. 'If
we were given three warnings, we would be put in an isolated cell. We were
scared of making complaints against officers because we expected to be treated
badly if we did. We were treated like pigs and very unfairly, as if we were
serious criminals.' A spokesman for Kalyx, which runs Harmondsworth, declined to
comment. Serco, which took over Yarl's Wood on 26 April, denied conditions had
deteriorated and said that many of the detainees' original concerns had been
addressed. A Serco spokesman said staff had been praised by the prisons
inspector for their good relationship with detainees. 'We take any complaints
seriously,' he said.
December 10, 2006 The Guardian
The company running the detention centre at which hundreds of asylum seekers
rioted last month is to be forced to pay the government more than £5m for a
series of performance failures. The huge amount, believed to be a record sum for
a private contractor to have to return to the public coffers, is likely to be
seized upon by critics of Britain's asylum system, who have long campaigned for
better conditions at the Harmondsworth detention centre, near Heathrow. The
payout comes soon after a damning report by the chief inspector of prisons
slated conditions at the detention centre. Anne Owers said her report was the
'poorest' she had ever delivered on an immigration centre. It highlighted a
number of areas where there were causes for concern, including the poor
relations between staff and detainees and the fact that staff were unable to
recognise torture victims. Over 60 per cent of detainees said they had felt
unsafe, while 44 per cent said they had been victimised by staff. The news that
Kalyx, the US security and services giant that runs a number of private prisons
in the UK, is to return £5,096,000 to the government was revealed in a House of
Lords debate last week by the Home Office minister, Baroness Scotland. Neither
Kalyx nor the Home Office would be drawn on why the company has had to pay such
a sizeable sum. But Scotland suggested it was at least partly to do with the
company's failure to manage the centre properly. She told the Lords that
'rigorous attempts to manage the situation in Harmondsworth' had now been put in
place. 'That was the basis of the concerns expressed and of the disagreement...
between management,' Scotland said. The payout is a significant blow to the
reputation of Kalyx. Last month, in an attempt to improve its image, the
controversial company changed its name from UK Detention Services. The company
claims on its website that it provides 'nationally recognised standards of
service, delivered by high-calibre staff' and provides 'protection and care
associated with the growth of the individual and strength'. It makes no
reference to the recent Owers report. There have been three suicides at
Harmondsworth. The latest was Bereket Yohannes, 26, who was found hanging in
January. Since Owers' damning report, a new centre manager has been introduced
and the government has pledged to act on its recommendations. Nicholas Hopkins,
a spokesman for Kalyx, said he would 'not be drawn' into commenting on the
matter. A Home Office spokeswoman confirmed Kalyx would soon be paying out. 'The
Immigration and Nationality Directorate has been in dispute with HDSL (a
subsidiary of Kalyx) over its contractual performance at Harmondsworth,' the
spokeswoman said. 'The dispute reached mediation point in summer 2006 and
reached an agreed settlement; the details of this are being finalised by lawyers
with full completion anticipated by the end of this month.' The impending payout
comes as the government fears it could lose a crucial Commons vote tomorrow over
plans to introduce more competition into the prisons and probation sector.
Prisons Minister Gerry Sutcliffe is so worried he has taken the highly unusual
step of emailing Conservative MPs offering them a private briefing in a
last-ditch attempt to get them onside. The move has inflamed Labour MPs, between
25 and 30 of whom have signalled that they will vote against the bill.
November 29, 2006 BBC
A mutiny inside the UK's largest immigration centre has been contained, the
Home Office has said. Detainees at the 500-capacity Harmondsworth centre in west
London staged a protest about living conditions in the early hours. Fires were
started and about 50 asylum seekers spelt out "help" and "SOS" with bed sheets
in the courtyard. The Home office said the situation was contained but some of
the detainees would be moved from Harmondsworth. Lin Homer, head of the
immigration and nationality directorate, said: "The perimeter remains secure,
and no-one has escaped. There has been no risk to the public. No injuries to
staff or detainees have been reported." Repeated disturbances: She said 150
immigration offenders at centres across the UK would be bailed to make space for
the detainees that were moved from Harmondsworth. "These are people who have
been detained in order to better enforce their removal. We will priorities the
cases according to risk. No foreign national prisoners will be released," Ms
Homer added. The disturbance erupted following the publication of a prisons'
watchdog report which criticised the centre's regime after repeated disturbances
there.
November 28, 2006 BBC
An immigration detention centre with a violent history including a death and
repeated disturbances is getting worse, the prisons watchdog has warned. Chief
inspector of prisons Anne Owers said Harmondsworth in west London was hard to
run - but her report was the poorest ever on a removal centre. Detainees said
they feared bullying, and staff were unaware of a special plan to prevent
suicides. The Home Office said it would draw up a plan to improve the centre.
The centre near Heathrow Airport is the largest in the country, handling
thousands of people facing deportation every year. In 2004 a detainee committed
suicide, sparking a major disturbance that led to its temporary closure. Since
then, Harmondsworth has been at the centre of ongoing campaigns against
detention of failed asylum seekers. In 2005, some 50 Zimbabweans held at the
centre launched a hunger strike to try to force their cases back into the
courts, saying they had been unfairly treated. In their July inspection,
inspectors found: More than 60% of detainees felt unsafe Almost half (44%) said
they had been victimised by staff Detainees described custody officers as
aggressive, intimidating and unhelpful The report also criticised the
management's over-emphasis on physical security and their strict control of all
movements. These measures went as far as banning detainees from keeping nail
clippers. At the same time, actions to prevent self-harm and suicide were weak,
despite the commitment of one co-ordinator.
July 31, 2004
Campaigners against the detention of asylum seekers have begun a series of
protests around the country. The demonstrations came after two apparent
suicides in removal centres, one of which led to disturbances.
Organisations backing the protests say they want to see an end to detention of
people who have not been convicted of any crimes. The demonstrations are
taking place outside five institutions which have been used to hold asylum
seekers. On Monday 19 July, a Ukrainian asylum seeker was found hanged at
Harmondsworth Removal centre, near Heathrow Airport. The man had been waiting a
date for deportation. The death sparked significant disturbances in the
centre which detainees protesting against conditions. (BBC)
July 21, 2004
The authorities finally regained full control of a detention centre today where
a “significant disturbance” was sparked by the death of a detainee. Up
to 100 asylum seekers at Harmondsworth, near Heathrow, surrendered rather than
face the power of specialist “tornado” teams of trained prison
officers. Fires were set and windows broken as trouble erupted at 11pm
yesterday, just hours after a 31-year-old detainee was found hanged.
Harmondsworth was expected to be empty by later this evening as the detainees
were moved to other immigration sites and prisons. In a report last
September, Chief Inspector of Prisons Anne Owers said it was “failing to
provide a safe and stable environment” for detainees. (Scotsman)
July 20, 2004
Hundreds of detainees at an asylum centre, where a man's death sparked a serious
disturbance are to be moved. The trouble at Harmondsworth Detention
Centre, which included fires being lit, started after the man was found hanging
at 2000 BST on Monday. The situation has "quietened right down"
but a number of detainees are yet to be brought under control. Earlier, staff
had to leave for their own safety. In September last year Chief Inspector
of Prisons Anne Owers said thecentre was an unsafe place for staff and
detainees, despite hard work by staff. And in May, at least 20 detainees
staged a five-day hunger strike in protest against alleged abuses, including the
physical treatment of those facing deportation, according to BBC sources.
(BBC)
October 11, 2003
A report issued by the chief inspector of prisons in England and Wales into
conditions at the Harmondsworth Detention Centre in 2002 has called for a police
investigation into reports of detainees being beaten by staff. Several detainees
are alleged to have been assaulted during transfers in and out of the centre,
often as they are sent for deportation. On several occasions during detainee
transfers, prison service Tactical Intervention Squads—armed with riot gear—have
been called in to assist the private security guards that man the centre.
The author of the report, Anne Owers, met one asylum-seeker who had required
hospitalisation for injuries sustained during an attempt to deport him and
others who had suffered serious assaults at the hands of guards. She
acknowledged that allegations by detainees of assault were “common” but that
few were referred to the police. “It is extremely important,” Owers
said, “that such claims should be fully investigated and, if necessary,
prosecuted, but we are told that police and prosecutors were reluctant to act.
If so, this is unacceptable.” Of the nine assaults against detainees
reported to the police in the past year all were dismissed as
unsubstantiated. The report also criticises the centre as being an “essentially
unsafe place for detainees and staff.” There were “increasing levels of
disorder” in the facility and a detainee-on-detainee assault rate of
approximately seven attacks per week. There is an average of one self-harm
incident a week officially recorded by the centre, a figure likely to be far
higher in reality. Despite this the inspectorate found that “suicide,
self-harm and anti-bullying procedures were not efficiently managed.” There
was also found to be insufficient mental health support for detainees held in
the centre’s medical unit. Owers claimed that Harmondsworth was “frightening
and potentially dangerous” and “not well equipped to ensure detainees’
protection.” Levels of desperation among detainees at the centre are
understandably high, with many having been resident in one or more detention
centre for months. Harmondsworth is situated next to London’s Heathrow Airport
and serves as the last port of call for thousands of asylum-seekers before their
forced removal from Britain. The report criticised staff shortages and
poor health and safety protection. It pointed out that a number of small fires
at the centre had “severely tested the fire response capability” there. Like
the Yarl’s Wood Detention Centre that was ravaged by fire in 2002,
Harmondsworth is not fitted with a sprinkler system. During the blaze at Yarl’s
Wood staff were unable to cope, leaving the panicked detainees to their own
fate. Conditions in Harmondsworth are directly comparable to those that existed
in Yarl’s Wood prior to its near destruction—an event that could have
claimed the lives of scores of detainees and staff. Harmondsworth has a
family unit capable of holding dozens of families with children. There were 25
children held at the centre at the time of the inspection. Owers found that the
educational, recreational and developmental requirements of young people at the
centre were being inadequately provided for. Furthermore, the lack of personal
security for detainees and the presence of many traumatised adult asylum-seekers
created an environment wholly unsuitable for children. “Given the inherent
insecurity of the centre as a whole, we remain of the view that, as in other
centres in England, children should only exceptionally be detained in
Harmondsworth, and not for any period longer than seven days,” the report
stated. The children of asylum-seekers, whether at a single centre or
cumulatively by being moved from one centre to another, often spend large
portions of their childhood in these grim and dangerous facilities prior to
being deported. The report comments that many of the problems at
Harmondsworth are common to all the asylum centres: “Many of the systematic
problems that detainees experienced at Harmondsworth have already been covered
in the Inspectorate’s six previous reports.” These include: “the
inability of the Immigration Service to progress cases efficiently or
communicate effectively with detainees; the absence of sufficient competent
legal advice and representation; the need for independent welfare advice to
assist detainees to deal with practical problems during detention and on
removal; and the need for more activities for detainees, including the ability
to work.” It is not the first official report to criticise Burns
International, the private security firm contracted by the Home Office to run
Harmondsworth until earlier this year. In April this year a Home Office report—only
published following pressure from the human rights group Liberty—on an
investigation into the suicide in 2000 of Lithuanian asylum-seeker Robertus
Grabys exposed some of the conditions facing vulnerable asylum-seekers in
Harmondsworth. The Home Office concluded that there had been insufficient care
for Mr. Grabys who was known to be suffering from severe depression. Found
hanging in his cell on the day he was to be deported, he had been dead for over
an hour. Burns International had not placed him on a suicide watch, and the
centre was found to have no formal policy to prevent suicides. In February
Burns International—a division of the Swedish-based multinational security
company Securitas—was outbid for the Harmondsworth contract by Premier
Detention Services Ltd., which currently runs the much criticised regime at the
Dungavel asylum centre in Scotland. (www.wsws.org)
September
26, 2002
A private company that runs the Harmonsworth detention centre for asylum
seekers and provides services to many NHS health trusts warned yesterday that
"serious errors of management" in part of its British business would
blow a near pounds 20m in profits. Shares in French-based Sodexho Alliance
plunged 30% on the Paris stock market, sending in a shockwave across the support
services sector that dragged rival Compass down 10% in London. Sodexho had
dismissed a number of top executives from its UK food and management business
and accused its auditors, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, of being "insufficiently
vigilant". Sian Herbert-Jones, chief financial officer at Sodexho
Alliance, said there was no evidence of fraud and she was confident the problems
would be solved by restructuring. Sodexho would tighten up management of
food and personnel costs, renegotiate some contracts and reduce overheads.
About 85 staff are to lose their jobs and there would be tighter controls on
wages, but Ms. Herbert-Jones insisted that key services should not be hit.
But the latest profit warning is the third year and investors are wary of all
unexpected announcements in a jittery stock market enviroment. "A
company can't afford this kind of news in this kind of market," said one
trader. The Harmonsworth centre in west London, which was hit by an
embarassing breakout by nine asylum seekers earlier this year, is run by
Sodexho's UK Detention Centre Services, which has its own management seperate
from the food and management group. (NWOM-news)
Harrow Crown Court
London, UK
Serco
January 20, 2012 UKPA
A former Harrow Crown Court prison guard has been jailed for four years for
trying to smuggle heroin. Dean Nelder, 28, was caught taking a package
containing cannabis and heroin into the court in April last year. Police were
alerted to the plan after a note was left in a cell at Wormwood Scrubs prison
tipping them off. Passing sentence at the Old Bailey, the Recorder of London
Peter Beaumont QC said: "You've let yourself down, you've let your family down,
and those who care for you, and you've made it very difficult to get a
responsible job in the future." Nelder was jailed for four years for conspiracy
to supply class A drugs, two years for conspiracy to commit misconduct in public
office and three years for possession of a class A drug with intent to supply,
to run concurrently.
Heathrow
Airport
England
Group 4 (formerly run by
Sodexho/UK Detention Services)
April 15, 2009 The Independent
Thousands of foreign visitors and refugees who are detained at Heathrow
airport each year are forced to endure degrading living conditions and
"deep-seated" negative attitudes about their welfare, an independent report
concludes today. The findings will add to growing concerns about the treatment
of foreign people held in detention in the UK before they are granted entry
clearance or sent home. The report by the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB)
makes note of cockroaches in Terminal 4 kitchens and the absence of proper
washing facilities for detainees held overnight. The monitors were so angered by
one case, the comprehensive failure to care for the needs of a disabled visitor
who was travelling to the UK with her young son, that they sought personal
apologies from the staff concerned. Some of the visitors held at Heathrow are
incoming passengers detained for questioning or refused entry to the UK. Others
are brought to Heathrow from immigration removal centres, prisons or police
stations to be deported. The authors said: "The generic term 'detainee' casts no
light on the humanity of the men, women and children to whom it is applied. The
IMB perceives a deep-seated negative attitude towards their wellbeing while in
detention at the airport, at both policy and operational levels." Other language
which the report said reflected these views included the use of the phrase
"these people" to describe visitors held in what staff inappropriately referred
to as "pens". Between 2008 and 2009, 33,100 people were detained at the airport,
of whom 22,000 were detained in holding rooms and 11,100 in Queen's Buildings,
which is mostly used for holding failed asylum-seekers before they are returned
to their own countries. The UK Border Agency has hired G4 Securicor to staff the
short-term detention facilities but the report makes it clear that the IBM
thought the Government had "failed repeatedly to supervise its staff in key
areas, all impacting on detainees' welfare." The IMB called on G4 Securicor to
address these issues urgently. It said: "We urge the [UK Border Agency] to take
necessary steps, whether in terms of their own processes, or the performance of
G4S as escort contractor, to drive down the length of time many are detained.
Action is overdue."
June 15, 2008 Sunday Mail
SUSPECTED ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS ARE BEING HELD IN "HOLDING rooms" at UK airports
and ports without regular independent scrutiny of their welfare and human
rights, three years after the prisons watchdog recommended in a report to the
home secretary that detainees should be monitored. The situation is affecting
thousands of people detained each year over visa and other document
irregularities by the UK Border Agency at three non-residential facilities run
by Group 4 Securicor at Edinburgh and Glasgow airports, and Scotland's
immigration reporting centre at Festival Court in Glasgow. Anne Owers, the chief
inspector of prisons in England and Wales - who has responsibility for
inspections because immigration is reserved to Westminster,
- recommended monitoring of the facilities after spot checks on Glasgow
airport and Festival Court in 2005. Heathrow, which has holding facilities at
each of its five terminals, is the only UK airport which has set up Independent
Monitoring Board (IMD) committees - members of the public who visit the
facilities every week. The UK justice department has not even begun talks with
its Scottish counterpart, which must approve the proposal, and it is feared it
could take another year to set up. One insider said: "It's shocking they have
been allowed to get away with this at a time when the Border Agency is targeting
more people coming into regional airports. "This is as big a political hot
potato as dawn raids. Even if these people are only detained for a matter of
hours before their cases are rejected and they are put on planes home, they are
still entitled to basic human rights, which includes access to full legal
representation. "There would have been an outcry had this happened at Dungavel
detention centre, which does have independent monitoring." John Wilkes, chief
executive of the Scottish Refugee Council, said: "In 2005, the chief inspector
of prisons had many reservations about the holding facilities in Glasgow
airport. She found people were not being given adequate information in their own
language about their reason for detention. Crucially, people were not offered
information on their legal rights and, as they had no access to phones, email or
fax, legal or other assistance was impossible. "In this report, three years ago,
she strongly recommended the need for independent monitoring, but this has not
yet happened in Glasgow. This must happen as a matter of necessity." Asylum
lawyer Fraser Latta said: "It's not uncommon for claimants to be detained on a
Friday and spend several hours in one of these places, and it must be extremely
frustrating if they can't get access to legal help." Latta said it was an
example of the breakdown of Westminster-Holyrood relations following former
first minister Jack McConnell's failure to win a separate asylum protocol for
Scotland. There has also been a sharp rise in the number of people being held at
the Glasgow facilities. Between January and the end of March 2005, 34 people
were detained. This year, over the same period, 242 people were held, including
some at Edinburgh airport. Most were held for less than eight hours, but one
person was held in Edinburgh for more than eight hours but less than 12,
according to the UK Border Agency. The August 2005 report claimed legal
information for detainees was "deficient"; childcare and child protection
provision was inadequate; and staff had not undergone enhanced Criminal Records
Bureau checks. Those held in Glasgow were not routinely seen by a health
professional, there were "insufficient" activities to relieve boredom and there
was no hot food available. Glasgow airport did not even have a television.
The inspectors could also see no evidence of notices or leaflets "designed to
inform detainees about legal rights or how to get immigration advice". At the
airport, accessing legal advice was "impossible" as no free phone calls were
automatically offered. Neil Powrie, head of the Association of Prison Visiting
Committees in Scotland, which hopes to help the IMB find volunteers, revealed he
has only recently been sent an email by the organisation asking him for "a chat"
about the plans. "When people are being detained there are always concerns if
their conditions are not being monitored," he said. "The fact the chief
inspector made the recommendation three years ago and nothing has been done
since is down to the Home Office. It would be a lot smoother if these issues
were devolved." Norman McLean, head of the IMB
Secretariat, said: "We are rolling out the programme gradually and it is a major
exercise. I don't want to be seen as intruding in Scotland and that's why we
must have approval from the executive." Tayside Police chief constable John
Vine, who has been appointed the first chief inspector of the UK Border Agency,
said: "I am very conscious of the fact we are dealing with human beings who in
many cases have a legitimate right to come to Britain and seek a better life.
Although I will principally be reporting to Westminster, I will have to
establish good relations with the devolved government as well." A UK Border
Agency spokesman welcomed monitoring of the facilities and added that Edinburgh
airport's holding facility is currently being refurbished.
January 16, 2007 IC Coventry
Conditions in holding centres for immigration offenders awaiting deportation
still need to be improved, the jails watchdog has said. Chief Inspector of
Prisons Anne Owers published reports on four immigration short-term holding
facilities at Colnbrook near Heathrow Airport, Sandford House in Solihull, and
Liverpool's Reliance House and John Lennon Airport. Inspectors found that
detainees at Colnbrook spent unacceptably long periods locked in single rooms,
and there was a lack of information and independent advice for people facing
removal. But it had avoided some of the problems seen in other facilities
because it was managed by the Immigration Removal Centre, offering access to
healthcare facilities, welfare and race relations support, Ms Owers said. Staff
at the three centres in Liverpool and Solihull - all run by Group 4 Securicor -
needed more training in the care and protection of children, her report found.
The facilities also required reorganising for a mixed population, it added. Ms
Owers said: "Accommodation still remains inadequate in many centres and the
needs of detainees in relation to healthcare, information and advice, and
preparations for release are not yet sufficiently met." Home Office Minister
Liam Byrne said: "I take very seriously the recommendations, and action plans
responding in detail are currently being drawn up to ensure further improvements
are made. "It is important to remember that non-residential short-term holding
facilities are intended to accommodate people for very brief periods of time."
Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Nick Clegg said: "The inspector's report
confirms what has been apparent for some time: that, for the Government, these
people are out of sight and out of mind. "Any society should be ashamed when
people are treated like this just because they are to be deported."
April 6, 2006 Gulf Daily News
Holding cells used by British immigration officials at a French freight terminal
were so crowded and filthy that staff called them "the dog kennels," a prison
watchdog said yesterday. Chief Inspector of Prisons Anne Owers also said staff
were unsure whether they could stop a detainee from fighting, trying to escape,
or committing suicide because they did not know whether English or French law
applied. Her report concerned the centres at Calais seaport and the Channel
tunnel freight and tourist terminals at Coquelles, which were set up on French
soil under an international treaty to hold detainees seeking entry to Britain.
Accommodation at Coquelles freight terminal was described by staff as the "dog
kennels," Owers said. The six 13 feet by 10 feet cells at Coquelles freight
terminal featured hole-in-the-ground toilets and on busy days one cell could be
used to hold six people. Furnishing, ventilation and heating were all
inadequate, her report added. Records suggested average detention time was seven
and a half hours, with the maximum nearly 12 hours. The chief inspector made 49
recommendations for improvement, including one that an independent monitoring
board should have regular access. Figures for May to July last year showed 661
detainees had been through Calais Seaport detention centre, 11 of whom were
children. The average period of detention was four hours, although the longest
was 17. In all, 17 per cent were given permission to enter Britain. At the third
centre at Coquelles tourist terminal, average detention time was three hours but
the maximum recorded was nearly 16 hours. None of the facilities, run by private
firm Group 4 Securicor, could appropriately separate men, women and children.
The chief inspector also published a report on detention facilities at Heathrow
airport, including the Queen's Building, which handles the greatest number of
forced removals from Britain. People could be detained there for up to 36 hours,
the report said. Owers complimented the staff's approach to welfare of detainees
but called the system inhumane. "Some of those we observed in detention had been
dealt with as though they were parcels, not people, and parcels whose contents
and destination were sometimes incorrect," Owers said.
September 1, 2001
Britain's policy on asylum seekers was engulfed in fresh controversy last night
after a French company behind a new detention centre was set to be given the
go-ahead to pay refugees 34p an hour for cleaning and cooking. In a move
branded 'inhumane' and akin to forced labour camps in Communist China, the
Government plans to grant the company a unique opt-out to save staff costs by
paying refugees at the centre less than one-tenth of the minimum wage.
Confidential Home Office documents obtained by The Observer reveal that UK
Detention Services, a subsidiary of the French catering conglomerate Sodexho,
has been waived the legal obligation to pay the minimum wage to refugees at a
detention camp which will hold 500 people near Heathrow airport when it opens
later this month. Norman Baker MP said that if asylum seekers were allowed
to work they should be paid the minimum wage. 'It is a disgrace that the
Government is prepared to pay millions to a company that is prepared to exploit
asylum seekers in such a cruel manner.' (The Guardian)
Home Office
November 22, 2011 The Guardian
Serious injuries or other life-threatening warning signs have been detected on
285 occasions when children have been physically restrained in privately run
jails over the past five years, according to Ministry of Justice figures. The
figure reflects the number of "exception reports" submitted by the four
privately run secure training centres to the youth justice board since 2006. The
warning signs triggering an exception report include struggling to breathe,
nausea, vomiting, limpness and abnormal redness to the face. Serious injuries
are classified as those requiring hospitalisation and include serious cuts,
fractures, concussion, loss of consciousness and damage to internal organs. The
MoJ figures, which have been disclosed for the first time, show that there were
61 such exception reports made last year. There have been 29 so far in the first
10 months of this year. Their disclosure comes as a two-day High Court challenge
is due to get underway over the MoJ's refusal to identify and trace hundreds of
children who have been unlawfully restrained in the privately run child jails
using techniques that have since been banned. Children's rights campaigners
believe they should be entitled to compensation. The Children's Rights Alliance
for England (Crae) has brought the case challenging the justice secretary, Ken
Clarke's, refusal to contact former detainees dating back to 1998, when the
first secure training centre opened. The legal challenge follows a second
inquest earlier this year into the death of 14-year-old Adam Rickwood, who was
found hanging in his room at Hassockfield Secure Training Centre, where he was
on remand in 2006. It concluded there was a serious system failure which gave
rise to an unlawful regime at the child jail. The use of several "distraction"
restraint techniques, that involved inflicting pain with a severe blow to the
nose or ribs, or by pulling back a child's thumb, were banned in 2008. The use
of physical restraint techniques to control teenagers simply for the purposes of
"good order and discipline" was also ruled unlawful by the court of appeal.
Carolyne Willow, Crae's national co-ordinator, said their lawyers will argue
there had been a chronic failure by the authorities to protect vulnerable
children over many years. "It was not children's responsibility to know about,
challenge and stop unlawful and abusive treatment," said Willow, adding there
were potentially thousands of former detainees who should now be contacted.
"Children in custody are among the most disadvantaged in society and they were
held in closed institutions where unlawful restraint was routine and ordinary.
It was the state, and the private contractors, who were duty-bound to protect
the welfare and rights of vulnerable children." She said that government
officials now had a duty to notify potential victims that their rights had been
infringed. The abuses should no longer remain hidden and unchallenged. The
security company, G4S, which operates three of the four child jails is also
joining the case as an 'interested party'.
November 13, 2011 The Guardian
The privatisation of public services has been branded a scandal by unions who
say that leaked tender documents reveal that the opening-up of the prison system
to competition is "heavily biased" in favour of private firms. The Ministry of
Justice has introduced competitive tendering for five jails as ministers seek to
expand the role of the private sector. They claim that competition will result
in more efficient services and a better deal for the taxpayer, but unions fear
that it will result in widespread redundancies, poorer working conditions and
reduced pensions for workers. Prison governors warn that expanding the private
sector's role in the custodial system will create a profit-maximising culture
that favours incarceration and cutbacks to rehabilitation. Internal documents
seen by the Observer show that the in-house public sector teams seeking to run
the first five prisons subjected to the new competition process were forced to
increase the total cost of their bids by more than 21%. An earlier document, in
2009, forced an increase of only 13%. Unions claim the substantial "add-ons"
rendered the public sector bids uncompetitive compared with those put forward by
their private sector rivals. The Principles Of Competition document, updated in
August 2010, applies to Birmingham, Buckley Hall, Doncaster, Featherstone II and
Wellingborough prisons. The document's terms have prompted claims that Tory
ministers are seeking to outsource the entire prison system to the private
sector. Currently in the UK, there are 13 private prisons holding 15% of the
incarcerated population. "Prison privatisation is no longer based on efficiency,
it's now ideological," said Harry Fletcher, assistant general secretary of the
probation union, Napo. "It's extraordinary that the public sector is forced to
take into account huge additional costs. It puts public prisons at a total
disadvantage. If this continues, there will be no state-run prisons in five
years."
August 5, 2011 The Guardian
Separate investigations into three deaths in immigration removal centres (IRC)
in the past month have been launched by the police, amid growing concern about
the treatment of detainees. The spate of deaths has caused alarm among critics
of the government's detention policy, who warn that the system is at "breaking
point" with poor healthcare putting people's lives at risk. Two men died from
suspected heart attacks at Colnbrook near Heathrow airport and the third killed
himself at the Campsfield House detention centre in Oxfordshire on Tuesday. John
McDonnell, Labour MP for Hayes and Harlington, who has two detention centres
including Colnbrook in his constituency, said he feared there would be more
deaths as the system struggled to cope with the number of people being detained.
"The government is now detaining people on such a scale that the existing
services are swamped," he said. "It is inevitable if we put the services under
such relentless strain that there will be more deaths as a result … we are
dealing with people who are extremely stressed and extremely vulnerable and the
services are not able to cope and not able to guarantee their safety." The first
man who died was Muhammad Shukat, 47, a Pakistani immigration detainee who
collapsed at around 6am on 2 July. His roommate Abdul Khan says that in the
hours before he died Shukat was groaning in agony, had very bad chest pains and
was sweating profusely. Khan, 19, from Afghanistan, said he began raising the
alarm around 6am and pressed the emergency button in the room 10 times in a
frantic effort to get help. Khan claimed that on three occasions members of the
centre's nursing team entered the room and found Shukat on the floor where he
had collapsed. Khan said they put him back into bed, took his temperature and
some medicine was administered, but did not call emergency assistance
immediately. According to Khan, the nurses initially said that Shukat could go
to see the centre's doctor at 8am. According to the London Ambulance Service,
Colnbrook staff called an ambulance just before 7.20am. Attempts were made to
resuscitate Shukat, but he was pronounced dead on arrival at Hillingdon
Hospital. A postmortem found the provisional cause of death to be coronary heart
disease. Shukat's body has been returned to Pakistan and his family are
understood to have no concerns about the medical treatment he received. The
second man to die at Colnbrook has not yet been named. According to the
Metropolitan police he was 35 and was found dead in his cell at 10.30am last
Sunday. London Ambulance Service officials pronounced him dead at the scene. "A
postmortem held on 1 August found the cause of death to be a ruptured aorta. The
death is being treated as unexplained," said a police spokesman. Colnbrook IRC
is managed by Serco. In a statement to detainees about Shukat's death, deputy
director at Colnbrook, Jenni Halliday, described her "deep regret" and extended
her condolences. In a statement to detainees about the second Colnbrook death,
Serco's contract manager, Michael Guy, informed detainees that a resident in the
short-term holding facility had died and that the death was thought to be from
natural causes. On Tuesday, a 35-year-old man hanged himself in the toilet block
at Campsfield House detention centre in Oxfordshire. A fellow detainee, who
refused to give his name, said the man had been hours away from being deported
and had become very anxious. "He was normally a very quiet person … but the
pressure is too much for people in here." It is understood the man had only been
at the centre for a few days before he died. The Home Office refused to give any
more details saying his extended family had yet to be informed. Emma Ginn, from
the campaign group Medical Justice, said the deaths had heightened concern about
the poor healthcare on offer to those being kept in UK detention centres. "Based
on medical evidence from many hundreds of detainees, Medical Justice has
documented the disturbingly inadequate healthcare provision that often
vulnerable immigration detainees are subjected to in Colnbrook and other
immigration removal centres... [this] combined with the perilous and frightening
conditions of detention, is a lethal cocktail, a disaster waiting to happen."
The UK Border Agency declined to comment on the specific circumstances of each
case. It said the police and the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman always
investigated deaths in immigration detention centres and it would be
inappropriate to comment until these were complete. David Wood, director of
criminality and detention at the UK Border Agency, said all detainees at
immigration removal centres have access to health services seven days a week.
"All detainees are seen by a nurse within two hours of arrival and are given an
opportunity to see a GP within 24 hours," he added. "The health of all detainees
is monitored closely, and the healthcare professionals are required to report
cases where it is considered that a person's health is being affected by
continued detention. "The UK takes its responsibilities seriously, which is why
we consider every case on its individual merits and will continue to offer
protection to those who need it. However, detention is an essential part of our
controls on immigration in the UK." A groundbreaking ruling -- A man with severe
mental illness was unlawfully locked up in a UK detention centre for five months
and subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment, according to a high court
ruling. The man, a 34-year-old Indian national, was detained in Harmondsworth
immigration removal centre between April and September last year. On Friday a
judge ruled that his treatment amounted to a breach of article 3 of the European
convention human rights. The man's lawyer said the ruling – thought to be the
first of its kind – raised wider questions about how the government treats
people with mental illnesses in the immigration and detention system. "The
court's decision that my client suffered inhuman or degrading treatment at a UK
detention facility sends a very loud and clear message to the authorities,"
said. "We would urge the minister to conduct a fundamental review into how
people suffering from mental illness are treated in the immigration detention
estate." The man, referred to as "S" in the ruling, had a history of serious ill
treatment and abuse before arriving in the UK. He served time in prison for
wounding and assault before being transferred to a secure psychiatric hospital
until his discharge in April 2010. Following his release the UK Border Agency
said there was "no evidence" he was mentally ill and he was detained in
Harmondsworth where his health deteriorated and he began to have psychotic
episodes and self harm. The high court intervened and he was released on bail.
His lawyers said he had been living with his family since then and had fully
complied with the conditions of bail set by the court. In the ruling judge David
Elvin said: "S's pre-existing mental condition was both triggered and
exacerbated by detention and that involved both a debasement and humiliation of
S since it showed a serious lack of respect for his human dignity. It created a
state in S's mind of real anguish and fear, through his hallucinations, which
led him to self-harm frequently and to behave in a manner which was
humiliating…" A UK Border Agency spokesperson said: "We regularly review our
detention policies and will look at the findings in this case to ensure lessons
are learned. Detention is an essential part of our immigration control but we
recognise the importance of ensuring it remains appropriate on a case by case
basis."
May 23, 2011 Daily Mirror
PRIVATE jail bosses paid from the public purse are putting profits offshore
to avoid tax, MPs will be told this week. Firms making millions out of the
privatisation of British justice are not paying their due, says a Prison
Officers’ Association report. Taxpayers pick up the bills for land and buildings
of these jails. But the people running them have parent companies which the POA
has traced to tax havens such as Jersey and investment banks. The report says:
“Billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money is being diverted from essential public
service provision that could benefit society as a whole. “Often those that
benefit most are registered in tax havens.” POA general secretary Steve Gillan
said it was “a national scandal”. Justice Secretary Ken Clarke recently
announced plans to let contractors run large prisons in Birmingham and Doncaster
plus ¬a new one near Wolverhampton. They will join 11 jails in England and Wales
and four young offender units which are run privately. The report says: “Making
a profit out of incarceration is morally repugnant. Companies have a vested
interest in keeping the prison population high to maximise profits.” It says
firms have no incentive to go along with Mr Clarke’s “rehab¬¬ilitation
revolution” – aimed at cutting the ¬crippling expense of ¬prisons by ¬reducing
the number of inmates. The POA paper, being sent to all MPs, says the true costs
to the nation are “hidden behind a -smokescreen of ¬commercial secrecy”. The
report demands an inquiry into private prison finances. The Ministry of Justice
said: “Contracts to run prisons have been awarded through open competition to
deliver best value for the taxpayer without ¬affecting standards.”
December 26, 2010 The Guardian
A security company has recruited two former senior civil servants, sparking an
outcry about the "revolving door" between Whitehall and the company. G4S,
formerly Group 4 Securicor, hired Dr Peter Collecott, the one time director of
corporate affairs at the Foreign Office, and David Gould, the Ministry of
Defence's former chief operating officer in charge of defence equipment,
according to a government report. The company, whose guards are under
investigation over the death of deportee Jimmy Mubenga, supplies armed guards
for embassy staff around the world. It has recruited former ministers including
Lord Reid as well as senior figures in offender management. The disclosure comes
two weeks after Sir George Young, the leader of the Commons, said he would
examine the "revolving door" between Whitehall and defence companies. Denis
MacShane, the Labour MP for Rotherham, called for a closer examination of civil
servants before they are allowed to take private sector roles that may overlap
with their former public duties. "There is great excitement over politicians and
outside interests but the real issue is the gilded path from Whitehall where
billions of pounds worth of public spending decisions are made into employment
with companies that gained from such contracts and contacts," he said. "We need
new rules so that anyone in public service cannot go straight into employment
with companies to which they previously awarded contracts." Harry Fletcher, the
assistant general secretary of the probation union Napo, who has been critical
of the way G4S has recruited senior civil servants from the Home Office, said:
"Appointments such as these give G4S a commercial advantage over their rivals
and will encourage others to go down the same route." The appointments are
listed in the latest report from the Advisory Committee of Business
Appointments, released earlier this month. Collecott, 60, was the ambassador in
Brazil from 2004 to 2008. He was a member of the Foreign Office's senior
leadership forum that brought together the most senior heads of mission
overseas. G4S said he has worked for their company on two separate domestic
projects – once in 2009 and again this year, a contract which ended in
September. The company has declined to explain the nature of the project. Gould,
the MoD's former chief operating officer of defence equipment and support –
which put him in charge of billions of pounds worth of procurement contracts –
took up a consultant post with G4S last year. He left the MoD in 2008, and has
also had roles at Selex Sensors and Airborne Systems Ltd. A spokesman for G4S
said he worked on a specific project with G4S in 2009. Last month, G4S prompted
an outcry by hiring Philip Wheatley, the former director general of the National
Offender Management Service. Wheatley's G4S role, which he takes up just as Ken
Clarke launches a plan to privatise much of the probation service he managed
until June, has been criticised by probation unions. Wheatley's appointment is
part of a pattern of G4S lobbying over probation privatisation. The company paid
for a meeting at the last Conservative conference, where G4S "offender
management" executive Jerry Petherick, spoke alongside the prisons minister,
Crispin Blunt.
July 18, 2010 AP
Brutal techniques to restrain children held in private prisons have been made
public after mounting pressure from children's rights groups. The Observer
disclosed details of the techniques used to train staff in restraining young
offenders in the country's four privately-run secure training centres. The
secret manual, Physical Control in Care, was created by the HM Prison Service
and approved by the Department of Justice in 2005. The government's Youth
Justice Board (YJB) had initially fought the Information Commissioner's order to
hand over the documents. When the Children's Rights Alliance (CRAE) called on
the Justice Secretary to hold an independent judicial inquiry, YJB finally
relented. The Observer revealed that control measures authorised for staff to
use include "an inverted knuckle into the trainee's sternum and drive inward and
upward," "alternate elbow strikes to the young person's ribs until a release is
achieved," and "drive straight fingers into the young person's face, and then
quickly drive the straightened fingers of the same hand downwards into the young
person's groin area." The manual went so far as to warn staff that some
techniques risk a "fracture to the skull" and "temporary or permanent blindness
caused by rupture to eyeball or detached retina." One passage states in regard
to administering a head-hold that "if breathing is compromised the situation
ceases to be a restraint and becomes a medical emergency." Carolyne Willow,
CRAE's national co-ordinator stated, "Until now, we've seen a compulsive
reliance on secrecy and an absolute failure to face up publicly to the
disgraceful and unlawful treatment of children the State officially describes as
vulnerable." The campaign to make the information public came after the deaths
of two children, Gareth Myatt, 15, and Adam Rickwood, 14, who died in the
custody of Rainsbrook and Hassockfield secure training centres in 2004.
September 4, 2009 Morning Star
Leaders of the prison officers' union have accused the government of
"corruption at the highest levels" for colluding with privateers to sell off
Britain's jails. Prison Officers Association (POA) general secretary Brian Caton
made the damning accusation as he exposed exclusively to the Morning Star the
defection to security privateer Serco of the head of a public-sector bid to run
Buckley Hall jail near Rochdale. Former prison governor Steve Hall, who had been
appointed by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) to lead the bid,
was revealed to have taken up a position with the huge multinational despite
government rules insisting that civil servants must "put the obligations of
public service above your own personal interests." Mr Caton declared that the
government "wants to auction off the prison service and is fully aware that
civil servants like Steve Hall take the information that they have gathered and
defect to the private sector. "This is corruption at the highest levels," he
stressed. "This is not first time this has happened and it comes despite Justice
Minister Jack Straw giving us an absolute assurance that it would not happen
again," Mr Caton added. The Civil Service code explicitly states that government
workers "must not misuse your official position, for example by using
information required in the course of your official duties to further your
private interests." But Mr Caton insisted that NOMS director of human resources
Robin Wilkinson had admitted that Mr Hall, who was appointed by the head of the
government's public-service bids unit Colin McConnell, had done exactly that.
Calling on NOMS director Phil Wheatley, Mr Wilkinson and Mr McConnell to all
resign, Mr Caton said that "the POA believes that this affair represents a
conspiracy to act in a corrupt manner and we will be demanding that an
independent inquiry should be conducted by the police - that's how serious this
is." The revelation comes just days after the POA announced that its members had
voted by a crushing four to one to strike against the government's drive to sell
off the Prison Service and hand jails over to private security firms such as
Serco. Mr Caton pointed out that Buckley Hall prison had to be renationalised
after its previous experience with privatisation proved a failure. "Of 11
private prisons in Britain, 10 are in the bottom quarter of the government's
prison performance league - that's how bad they are," he asserted. "Privatisation
is about driving down standards and paying prison officers less because all
these companies care about is profits," Mr Caton added. "It is an insult to our
members at Buckley Hall, who gave information to Steve Hall to support the bid
to keep the jail in the public sector, that he has now stuffed that information
into a briefcase and taken it to Serco." Mike Nolan, president of Civil Service
union PCS prison service group, emphasised that such a breach of the Civil
Service code was "undoubtably immoral. "This has happened a few times, but what
is worse is that prison managers are actually being targeted by the
private-sector companies that want to take over prisons - and Serco in
particular is now riddled with them," he added. Serco and the Ministry of
Justice had not responded to requests for information as the Morning Star went
to press.
June 29, 2009 Independent
Figures obtained by More4 show four of Britain's 10 private prisons received
the second-lowest rating in Government tests. Britain's private prisons are
performing worse than those run by the state, according to data obtained under
the Freedom of Information Act. The findings, based on the overall performances
of 132 prisons in England and Wales, appear to undermine claims by ministers
that the greater use of private jails is raising standards for the accommodation
of more than 83,000 prisoners held across both sectors. Separate figures, also
released under the right-to-know law, show that nearly twice as many prisoner
complaints are upheld in private prisons as they are in state-run institutions.
The Government is committed to building five more private prisons to accommodate
the growing prison population, which is predicted to rise to 96,000 by 2014. But
the poor performance ratings among 40 per cent of private prisons in England and
Wales throw into question the cost savings and other benefits of using outside
businesses to tackle the prison crisis. The data obtained by More4 News shows
that four of the 10 private prisons scored the second lowest rating of 2,
"requiring development", and only one above an assessment of "serious concern."
The Ministry of Justice introduced the Prison Performance Assessment Tool (PPAT)
last year, providing the first direct comparison between public and private
prisons. It ranks the prisons out of four gradings using a wide range of
measurements, including escapes, assaults and rehabilitation. In the second
quarter of last year, the average overall score for prisons in the private
sector was 2.7. For the 123 public sector prisons the average was 2.83. In the
following quarter this gap had widened to 2.6 and 2.85. This is a difference of
almost 10 per cent. No private prison attained the top mark of 4, defined as
"exceptional performance." There were also disparities in the number of
complaints upheld in private and state-run prisons. Rye Hill Prison, a private
prison run by G4S, which has been a focus of particular criticism since it
opened in 2001, saw a total of 22 complaints, well above the average in both the
public and private sectors.
March 14, 2009 Sunday Mail
Former Defence Secretary John Reid faced fierce criticism yesterday as it
emerged the world's largest security firm had won a huge contract from the
Ministry of Defence weeks after taking him on as a consultant. Mr Reid - who ran
the MoD until May 2006 before resigning from the Cabinet while Home Secretary in
June 2007 - was hired by G4S three months ago for £50,000 a year to offer
'strategic advice'. This week, it was awarded a four-year contract to supply
private security guards for around 200 MoD and military sites across Britain in
a deal thought to be worth tens of millions of pounds. While many former
ministers have taken private-sector jobs, it is unusual for such a senior
Government figure and sitting MP to work for a company so closely linked to
their former department. Opposition MPs last night said Mr Reid's earnings from
G4S were 'totally inappropriate', while the Taxpayers' Alliance campaign group
called for the rules governing employment for ex-ministers to be reviewed
urgently.
January 22, 2009 Morning Star
DAVID Miliband said that the war on terror was an error, but some people
don't regret it. Private security companies like Group 4 made a mint. Now, it
wants to spread its good fortune - this month, Group 4 Security gave a £50,000
position to former Labour minister John Reid as an "adviser." Reid fits in this
part-time job when he isn't too busy representing the good people of Airdrie and
Shotts as their Member of Parliament. Group 4 has plenty of reasons to want
access to the contact book of a former home and defence secretary - the firm now
supplies the armed guards looking after British officials in Iraq and
Afghanistan while locking up prisoners, asylum-seekers and "terror suspects" in
Britain, so Reid is worth every one of the five million pennies that they are
giving the man. Reid was once a Communist Party member, but abandoned Marxism in
favour of new Labour. This is odd, because his career seems to illustrate the
crudest and most determinist kind of Marxism. For years, Marxists have been
grappling with the subtle and sophisticated ways in which the capitalist class
dominates society, but Group 4 opted for a very unsubtle approach - the
capitalists just hired Labour's representative. Reid hasn't always hawked his
brawn for the money men. Back in 1992, Reid signed a House of Commons motion
calling on Sir Norman Fowler to resign from the board of Group 4. The motion
said that the House "regrets that the right honourable Member for Sutton
Coldfield (Norman Fowler), chairman of the Conservative Party, has not seen fit
to resign his directorship of another Group 4 company, Group 4 Securitas, and
urges him to do so." It added: "The government should suspend all further moves
to privatisation within the criminal justice system." Reid's call for Fowler to
resign from Group 4 and for the government to shun the firm came after the
company let a number of prisoners escape from their vans on the way to court.
Whizz forward a decade and a half and Reid, having demanded that Fowler abandon
Group 4, has himself taken a job with the firm. In the meantime, Conservative
and Labour governments have not stopped their "privatisation of the criminal
justice system," they have expanded it. Group 4 has men with truncheons in
Britain and men carrying guns in Iraq. Nor has the firm become any less
accident-prone. Group 4 Security prefers to be called G4S because, in ad
people's language, the brand is tarnished. Group 4 was even described as a
"national laughing stock" by the government's own lawyers in court in 2003 after
a riot at an immigration detention centre that it ran which was later burned to
the ground. Things haven't improved since. Reid himself sent the firm to new
frontiers, where the firm ran new fiascos. When Reid was home secretary, the Law
Lords told him that just labelling foreigners "terror suspects" didn't mean that
he could lock them up without trial. Reid turned to Group 4 for help. It cobbled
together something called "control orders," a house arrest for these "terror
suspects" administered by Group 4 and other private firms. Control orders were
simultaneously too draconian and too lax - prisoners, including vulnerable men
who had been tortured in their home countries, were tagged and monitored by
Group 4. Those who stuck by the rules were pushed to the edge of mental illness
by the isolation of the strict house arrest. At the same time, Group 4 allowed
another prisoner to simply disappear. This may have been embarrassing for the
firm and for Reid, but they manfully hid their red faces and entered into a new
relationship when Reid left government. Group 4 has risen thanks to the crudest
economic determinism - Reid, who authorised the signing of cheques for Group 4
as a minister, ends up getting cheques from the firm. Reid is not alone. A small
squad of politicians worked to get Group 4 where it is today. First, Tory
chairman Fowler helped the firm get into the prisons business in the 1990s.
Group 4 tightened its grip on British jails last year when it took over rival
private prisons firm GSL. It bought GSL from an investment company called
Englefield Capital, which employs another Labour ex-minister, former defence
secretary George Robertson, as an adviser. Group 4 then broke into the
international mercenary trade by buying a company called Armor Group, whose
armed men guard British officials in Iraq and Afghanistan. Up until this, Armor
Group's chairman had been another top politician - leading Tory MP Malcolm
Rifkind. Twenty years ago, the idea that a private company would run our jails
and wars would have looked like science fiction. By hiring politicians, the
"security industry" made it a reality.
January 14, 2009 Politics.Co.UK
An official investigation into those working in the immigration services has
begun after it was revealed two members of staff are British National party (BNP)
members. One guard was revealed to be a member after his name was discovered on
the membership list released on the internet last year. Another has been
suspended while his links to the party are investigated. The only two services
where membership of the BNP constitutes grounds for dismissal are the police and
the Prison Service. Anyone who works in immigration or removals must sign a
declaration saying they are not a member of any far-right group, including the
BNP. The UK Border Agency said: "All allegations are investigated and the UKBA
can revoke an individual's accreditation to work for the agency or have any
contact with detainees." Labour MP and anti-racist campaigner Diane Abbott told
the Independent - which broke the news following a long-term immigrant rights
campaign - that the use of private contractors for detention and deportation was
at the root of the problem. "If it is true that staff employed to work with
asylum-seekers and immigrants are members of the BNP then it is yet another sign
that the Home Office are allowing for the mistreatment of immigrants in this
country," she told the newspaper. "For years, campaign groups and my colleagues
and I have been pointing out that hiring private contractors to work as
immigration guards is a bad idea. It seems we will now have more proof of this."
The suspended security guard is being investigated by a private contractor.
January 11, 2009 The Observer
John Reid, the former home secretary, has cashed in on his ministerial
experience by taking a £45,000-a-year job with private security company G4S, the
Observer has learnt. His appointment comes just days after a parliamentary
committee warned that former ministers have been exploiting their insider
knowledge "with impunity". Formed from a merger of Group 4 and Securicor, G4S is
Britain's largest security firm with contracts ranging from private prisons to
the armed guards defending British officials in Iraq. The appointment was
disclosed by the advisory committee on business appointments, which polices
former ministers' job applications. Reid has been judged free to lobby ministers
and officials on behalf of the security company. The public administration
committee (PAC) called last week for all lobbying activity to be registered and
monitored by a tougher watchdog - claiming the industry's attempt at
self-regulation had entirely failed. "We are strongly concerned that, with the
rules as loosely and as variously interpreted as they currently are, former
ministers in particular appear to be able to use with impunity the contacts they
built up as public servants to further a private interest," said a statement
from the PAC.
June 11, 2008 Mail on Sunday
The Home Office squandered £29million of taxpayers' money on a flagship giant
asylum centre which was never built - including hiring in a 'financial advisor'
who charged almost £16,000 a month. A scathing report from MPs exposes a
catalogue of costly blunders and lambasts the failing department for a
'startling absence of common sense' in one of its most embarrassing fiascos of
recent years. Seven years after officials started working on the ambitious plans
to house thousands of asylum seekers on a former RAF station at Bicester,
Oxfordshire, the site remains empty and derelict with 'no benefit' to the
taxpayer. Vast sums were paid to consultants, private advisors and contractors
and when ministers pulled the plug on the entire project in 2005 they were
forced to hand over millions more in cancellation fees. Officials failed to
understand how fierce local opposition and legal challenges would drag out the
process, and made no attempt to plan for future uses of the site or the risk
that other immigration policy changes would scupper the scheme. Last night the
Home Office claimed the disaster had led to an 'overall positive impact for the
public' because officials had learned important lessons. Former Home Secretary
David Blunkett announced the scheme in 2001, as part of a strategy to speed up
and streamline the creaking asylum system by housing applicants in a series of
huge accommodation centres across the country. Thousands were to be placed in
the first centre at an isolated site outside Bicester, but crucially it would
not be secure and the immigrants would be free to come and go as they pleased.
The plans brought a storm of protests, not only from local residents but also
from refugee support groups who claimed leaving so many asylum seekers to
languish at a remote site, far from any local community, was a disastrous plan.
Planning inspectors rejected the plans, but John Prescott used his powers to
overturn their decision, further infuriating locals. Finally ministers realised
in 2005 that the centre was unnecessary and unworkable, but not before almost
£30million of public money had been wasted. The PAC report reveals how the Home
Office hired a Financial advisor at a cost of £15,743 per month, and a
procurement advisor who was paid £15,559 per month, because no civil servants
were judged to have the right expertise. The pair, who have not been named, were
paid more than £1.1million for less than three years work, on top of £6.3million
paid out to consultants. MPs complained that the Home Office was unable to show
whether the highly paid consultants 'added value'. Private contractors Global
Solutions Limited were paid £7.6 for design work, but claimed almost £8million
in termination fees when the Bicester scheme was axed. PAC chairman Edward Leigh
said the project 'embodied lack of foresight, poor business planning and a
startling absence of common sense.' He said the scheme was 'always going to
provoke opposition in the local community' but the Home Office took no account
of that, or of objections from refugee groups, and made no effort to make
contact with local interest groups or MPs to discuss objections. Nor did the
department realise - until it was too late - that a decline in the number of
asylum seekers and some success in speeding up the system meant the centre was
increasingly pointless. Last month the Home Office announced plans to build a
secure immigration detention centre on the Bicester site, although it will not
be open until 2012 at the earliest and will require planning permission. Shadow
Immigration Minister, Damian Green, attacked the Bicester debacle as 'a symptom
of long-term incompetence by immigration ministers, who failed to notice that
asylum numbers were dropping just when they were planning this new centre.
'Their latest plan is to turn the derelict site into a detention centre. I hope
they have done their homework better this time.' A Home Office spokesperson
said: 'At the time, we believed accommodation centres to be the right decision
but as circumstances changed and the project was delayed, we reviewed that
decision. 'Our experience with this project has taught us some important
lessons, and this, along with the other improvements put in place, has led to an
overall positive impact for the public.'
January 18, 2008 BBC
Privately-run prisons perform worse than those run by the public sector, a
document leaked to the BBC suggests. The Prison Service papers include an
internal "league table", which ranks all jails in England and Wales. It shows
that most privately-managed prisons score badly on security and maintaining
order and control. Prison governors want the government to re-think private
management of prisons. But the Prison Service says private and public sector
jails cannot be compared. BBC home affairs correspondent Danny Shaw said the
report would re-open the debate about private sector involvement in prisons, at
a time when private companies were bidding to fund and operate a series of new
jails. A national table, ranking performance in six categories, showed that 10
of the 11 privately-run prisons in England and Wales were in the bottom quarter.
Assessments 'subjective' -- Peterborough Prison, managed by a private firm for
three years, came last out of 132 prisons and prison clusters, with low marks
for reducing re-offending, organisational effectiveness and decency. The Prison
Governors Association has called on the government to re-think its policy of
involving private firms in the management of prisons. But sources within the
private security industry said the findings shown in the documents were based on
subjective assessments. The Prison Service said direct comparisons between the
private and public sectors were "not appropriate" because some figures were
counted differently. Privately-managed prisons, which were introduced to the UK
in the 1990s, are assessed by HM Inspectorate of Prisons in the same way as
public sector prisons.
September 27, 2007 BBC
A detention lorry that will hold suspected illegal immigrants is being trialled
at a Dorset ferry port. Up to 10 people can be held in the privately-owned truck
for a maximum of 12 hours while their details are checked out. The purpose-built
lorry was unveiled at Poole, Dorset, on Thursday and will be used at ports along
the south coast. The Border and Immigration Agency said similar trucks could be
used around the UK if the trial was a success. The five-month trial of the
mobile unit will test whether it can speed up the processing of offenders so
they can be deported more quickly. The lorry is operated by GEO Group Inc, a
multinational company that specialises in correctional and detention management.
February 1, 2006 The Guardian
The Home Office yesterday became the first Whitehall department in living memory
to present accounts to parliament that were delivered so late and so flawed that
the National Audit Office is unable to tell MPs whether they are correct. The
department, which spends £13bn a year of taxpayers' money, will be hauled before
parliament to explain "spectacular" errors and a failure by senior management
under Sir John Gieve, the former permanent secretary and now deputy chairman of
the Bank of England, to put together proper accounts. The report by Sir John
Bourn, the comptroller and auditor general, reveals that two versions of the
accounts from the Home Office were presented to the NAO which were so different
that no single account balance was the same. The report says: "The accounts were
riven with numerous inaccuracies." The figures were so disparate that one set
says the Home Office overspent by £68m while the second set said the Treasury
owed the Home Office £112m, a difference of £180m. Other examples included
wrongly putting the cost of the private prison estate, which is paid by
contractors, on the taxpayers' account.
Lowdham
Grange Prison
England
Serco (bought
Premier)
May 23, 2010 The Daily Telegraph
Under the scheme, the publicly-funded broadcaster handed over footage to inmates
who earn just £30 a week rather than members of its own 23,000 staff. Convicts
at a privately run Category B jail, the second-highest security level,
transferred tapes of old television shows to computer to save them for
posterity. Senior staff in the BBC’s archives department visited the jail to
watch the work in progress while meetings were held to discuss a landmark deal
for the prisoners to digitise all 1million hours of programmes in its vaults.
Fearful about the controversy the scheme could cause, the BBC never discussed it
publicly and even the broadcasting union, Bectu, was unaware of it. Details were
obtained by this newspaper through a Freedom of Information request that took
more than four months rather than the usual 20 working days. The BBC insists
that it has not given any money to Serco, the private jail operator, for the
secret scheme nor signed any contracts, following the pilot project last year.
However emails disclosed by the corporation show that it had shown considerable
interest in the innovative project proposed by Serco, which runs four prisons in
England. The BBC owns more than 1m hours of historic content, some of it decades
old and at risk of being lost. It employs 66 people to look after it, at a cost
of £5m a year, in its Information and Archives department. The corporation
estimates it would take 10 years to safely copy all 100m items in its collection
into longer-lasting digital formats. In December 2008 it was approached by Serco
to become involved in Artemis – Achieving Rehabilitation Through Establishing a
Media Ingest Service – a new project for prisoners to transfer archive documents
to computers. Serco said it would provide “high-quality employment” and the
chance of an NVQ qualification for inmates and HMP Lowdham Grange, a
628-capacity jail near Nottingham all of whose inmates are serving at least four
years. The firm said this would mean it could provide a “stable work force”. The
BBC was told it would prove a “very cost-effective” way of digitising its
archive, and several meetings were organised to discuss plans. Managers agreed
to hand over 20 hours of old videos, including episodes of Horizon and Earth
Story, so prisoners could transfer them to computer and also add “meta-data” –
typed detailed descriptions of the footage to help producers search through it
more easily. The British Library and National Archives also provided material
for the pilot project. In September last year, five members of BBC staff visited
the jail, where a production workshop had been built, and were reported to be
“pleased” with what they saw of the prisoners’ work and enthusiasm. However
David Crocker, the driving force behind the scheme at Serco, admitted: “The
major concern was around the potential negative newspaper headlines that the BBC
may attract.” The company did discuss the scheme with one newspaper and one
trade magazine but made no reference to the BBC’s involvement. In November, Mr
Crocker told the BBC: “I can’t thank you enough for finding a project for us to
kick-start Artemis.” He said his staff were drawing up “terms of reference” and
would then “cost the project” of a full-scale digitisation of the BBC’s archive.
However no deals have yet been signed. The BBC said: “The BBC did hold
discussions with Serco about their planned project to digitise archives. As part
of this the BBC, alongside other organisations, provided some material for Serco
to use as part of its feasibility study for the project. “No payment was made to
Serco as part of this, nor was any guarantee or promise of work entered into.
“The BBC has no plans to work with Serco to digitise its programme archive and
has not come to any agreements nor signed any contracts with any firms about
utilising the prison workforce on any project.”
December 17, 2009 Liverpool Daily Post
A LIVERPOOL prison is among five in the country allowing its inmates to
watch satellite television. More than 4,000 prisoners enjoy the privilege in
private jails nationwide. Altcourse Prison, in Fazakerley, is among the
contractor-run prisons allowing access to a “limited number” of satellite
channels. The number of prisoners allowed to watch satellite varies according to
behaviour. But Justice minister and city MP Maria Eagle revealed the number was
currently around 4,070. The Garston MP was responding to a written question from
Tory MP Philip Davies. She said no inmates in public sector jails have access to
satellite in their quarters. But they do at Altcourse and other GS4-run prisons
in South Wales and Warwickshire. The other private prisons offering satellite
television are run by Serco in Staffordshire and Nottingham. Ms Eagle said: “In
these establishments, satellite television in cells is generally only available
to prisoners on the enhanced or standard level of the incentives and earned
privileges scheme.” There are 84,500 prisoners in England and Wales, meaning
around one in 20 has access to satellite TV.
March 28, 2005 Nottingham Evening Post
An investigation has been launched after a man was found hanged in his prison
cell. The discovery of Thomas Maughan's body at Lowdham Grange Prison was made
by officers on a routine check at 11.45pm on Saturday. He was pronounced dead
shortly after midnight, the Home Office said. A spokeswoman for the prison
service said: " A staff patrol found him hanging from his cell's toilet
door. "They tried CPR and paramedics continued when they arrived, but he
was pronounced dead at 12.20am." The 45-year-old, from Sheffield, was
jailed for six years in 2003 for burglary. Premier Custodial Group spokesman
David Bandey said: "I can confirm he was found dead. It will now go to a
full inquiry." In January, a report by the Prison Reform Trust called
Private Punishment: Who Profits? said private prisons like Lowdham - one of ten
in the country - were missing key targets on reducing serious assaults, drugs
and 'purposeful activity' among inmates.
Medway Secure
Training Centre
Rochester, UK
Group 4 Securicor
January 5, 2009 Kent News
Inmates at the Medway Secure Training Centre – which houses some of
Britain’s most hardened criminals – enjoyed a weekend of tropical fun, playing
bongo drums and limbo dancing, and even being given access to an alcohol-free
beach bar. During the two-day knees-up, the convicted criminals were also
allowed to play games including Scalectrix in a specially-themed youth club and
each wing of the jail took part in a competition to come up with the best
Hawaiian decorations. Group Four Securicor, which runs the centre, has not
revealed the full cost of the party. Taxpayers’ Alliance spokesman Susie Squire
branded the weekend event “a waste of money” given the current economic crisis.
She said: “Every penny of public money is now incredibly precious. “We’re all
tightening our belts in the recession – the public sector should be doing the
same. “While we must encourage young offenders to improve themselves and keep
busy and active, there’s no need for this sort of frivolity. “I would view this
very much as a luxury."
National Health
Secretary
January 21, 2011 The Northern Echo
MORE than a year after a company chairman’s wife donated £21,000 to the office
of Health Secretary Andrew Lansley, the same company has been awarded a £53m NHS
prison health contract. The contract, awarded by the North-East Offender Health
Commissioning Unit, has been awarded to Care UK rather than current NHS
providers. Last night, Grahame Morris, the Labour MP for Easington and a member
of the Commons Health Select Committee, said it represented a clear conflict of
interest. Trevor Johnston, North- East head of health for the Unison union,
said: “Questions have to be asked why it would go to this particular company.” A
year ago, it was revealed that Mr Lansley’s private office was given £21,000 by
Caroline Nash, wife of the then chairman of Care UK, John Nash, to help fund
their operations. The November 2009 donation was part of a total of £203,500
given to the Conservative Party by Mr Nash and his wife over the past five
years. Mr Nash is no longer chairman of Care UK, but remains a consultant to the
company. Until the contract was put out to tender last year, the primary health
care service for 5,000 inmates at eight North- East prisons and young offender
establishments was provided by more than 400 NHS staff. Care UK provides
services for about 500,000 people including hospitals, walk-in centres, care
homes and GP practices. It also runs 59 residential care facilities. About 96
per cent of its business is on behalf of the NHS.
Northhampton
Crown Court
Northhampton, UK
Group 4
May 25, 2004
A violent criminal who escaped from prison guards while being taken to jail was
arrested this evening, police said. Carl Townsend, 22, was being
transported by Group 4 security guards from Northampton Crown Court to Bedford prison after being sentenced to three and a
half years for aggravated burglary and assault when he escaped on April 30, this
year. (Scotsman)
Nottinghamshire
Prison
Premier (formerly Group 4 prison)
December 17, 2009 Liverpool Daily Post
A LIVERPOOL prison is among five in the country allowing its inmates to
watch satellite television. More than 4,000 prisoners enjoy the
|