Some 91 prisoners have been accidentally freed by mistake between April 1 and October 31 this year.
It comes as two other men were accidentally let out of HMP Wandsworth last week.
Brahim Kaddour-Cherif, a 24-year-old Algerian man, was found in Islington after more than we a week on the run, following a tip off from the member of the public.
Just a few days after he was released, William ‘Billy’ Smith was also accidentally freed from HMP Wandsworth.
A few days later Smith voluntarily handed himself back in.
Sign up for all of the latest stories
Start your day informed with Metro’s News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens.
The accidental releases happened just days after migrant sex offender Hadush Kebatu was mistakenly released from HMP Chelmsford in Essex.
Kebatu, a former asylum seeker from Ethiopia, became one of the most notorious sex offenders in the country when his case sparked protests outside the Bell Hotel in Epping.
Timeline of how the two prisoners were accidentally freed
Wednesday, October 29: Brahim Kaddour-Cherif is accidentally freed from HMP Wandsworth.
Monday, November 3: William ‘Billy’ Smith is accidentally freed from HMP Wandsworth.
Tuesday, November 4: Prison Service informs the Met a prisoner has been released in error. Justice Secretary David Lammy is informed.
12pm – Wednesday, November 5: Lammy is quizzed by shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge during Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons over whether or not any more asylum seekers had been mistakenly freed from prison. Lammy declines to respond.
12.41pm: News breaks that a prisoner has been accidentally freed from Wandsworth prison and a manhunt is underway.
3.52pm: Met Police name him as Brahim Kaddour-Cherif.
4.19pm: Surrey Police say a second prisoner, William ‘Billy’ Smith, was accidentally freed from HMP Wandsworth on Monday and a manhunt is underway.
Thursday, November 6: – Smith returns to Wandsworth after handing himself back in.
Friday, November 7: Kaddour-Cherif is arrested in north London after being spotted by a member of the public.
Justice Secretary David Lammy has said he was ‘appalled at the rate of releases in error’.
But prison guards have revealed to Metro this mistake is so much more common than the public realise.
They said most prisons are ‘overcrowded but understaffed’ meaning it is hard to spot such serious errors.
One officer told Metro: ‘It is a category B jail, there will be prisoners going in and out everyday for court dates and visits, and they are so understaffed.’
‘It is just part of a wider issue of prison funding.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
