- Reaction score
- 6,467
- Points
- 1,360
"Extra canteen for that inmate....."
Five prison officers suspended after Lee Rigby murder suspect Michael Adebolajo loses two teeth 'in melee' at Belmarsh high-security wing
Several officers 'called in to help after Adebolajo began acting violently'
He was injured during subsequent melee in prison's high-security wing
Officers are suspended on full pay pending the results of an investigation
Prison Officers' Association 'angry' at Ministry of Justice
Says the officers deny any wrongdoing and used 'approved techniques'
By Emily Davies
PUBLISHED: 00:07 GMT, 20 July 2013 | UPDATED: 08:10 GMT, 20 July 2013
Five prison officers have been suspended after one of the men accused of hacking off-duty soldier Lee Rigby to death in Woolwich had two teeth knocked out.
The men were suspended from their duties from top-security Belmarsh Prison in south London after the alleged attack on Michael Adebolajo, 28, three days ago.
He had refused to obey officers’ instructions and had to be restrained, according to prison sources.
It is understood that five officers have to be on hand when Adebolajo leaves his cell.
Four of the officers were suspended on Thursday, while the fifth was suspended yesterday.
All of the officers are on full pay pending the results of the investigation.
Peter McParlin, chairman of the Prison Officers Association, accused the Ministry of Justice of over-reacting to the situation.
He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'We have spoken to our members and on the basis of what our members have told us they have done absolutely nothing wrong.
'We are concerned that the Ministry of Justice have over-reacted due to the notoriety of this prisoner.'
Mr McParlin criticised the MoJ for failing to 'correct false reporting of the incident at Belmarsh.
He said restraint techniques were designed to minimise injuries to staff or prisoners 'but sometimes there are unforeseen consequences in any violent incident'.
Mr McParlin added: 'Some people have the idea that somehow it's a sitcom like Porridge. I'm afraid the reality of the modern prison system is far different from that.
He told the Times: ‘We feel that the Ministry of Justice have let the staff down here.
‘They have suspended five of our members but that does not necessarily mean they are guilty of anything.’
Adebolajo’s brother Jeremiah said Adebolajo telephoned after the incident, saying that he was bleeding and had lost the teeth.
She said: ‘I can confirm five members of staff have been suspended while there is a police investigation on going.’
She added that this was ‘not unusual’.
Adebolajo has been charged with murder and possession of a revolver, and also charged with the attempted murder of two police officers.
His alleged accomplice, Michael Adebowale, is charged with murder and possession of a firearm for the May 22 attack outside Woolwich barracks.
In a statement earlier this week, the POA said the officers involved 'strenuously deny any wrongdoing' and that the prisoner had been 'subjected to restraint using techniques' which are 'only used where necessary'.
It added: 'The POA will be supporting them legally and emotionally during this difficult time.
'The use of restraint is only used where necessary when dealing with incidents up and down the country.
'The POA will fully co-operate with any police investigation and are hopeful that this matter will be resolved quickly and we expect the officers to be completely exonerated.'
Adebolajo, from Romford, east London, complained about his treatment at the hands of prison staff during a court appearance last month.
During the June 5 hearing via video-link from the prison, he was flanked by prison officers in full riot gear.
Belmarsh staff asked for him to be handcuffed on the basis he was ‘unpredictable’ and had refused to comply with their orders.
The judge, Mr Justice Sweeney, terminated the video-link after Adebolajo launched into a series of rants against prison staff.
The unit in which he is being detained has the highest security classification in the country, and holds notorious terror suspects and dangerous felons.
Inmates have included Al Qaeda preacher Abu Qatada until his deportation earlier this month, and fanatic Abu Hamza, who was extradited to the US last year.
The cost of keeping each inmate in the unit is estimated at £65,000 a year.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2370988/Five-prison-officers-suspended-Lee-Rigby-murder-suspect-Michael-Adebolajo-loses-teeth-melee-Belmarsh-high-security-wing.html#ixzz2ZaNW2B52
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
Tow Tripod said:The staff will be punished severely, unfortunately!
Jim Seggie said:I had a feeling this was going to happen. Now the scum will sue, and quite possibly be given a nice "settlement" to make this all go away.
Two British Muslim converts were sentenced to life in prison on Wednesday for hacking a soldier to death on a London street in broad daylight, a gruesome killing that horrified the nation and provoked an anti-Islamic backlash.
Michael Adebolajo, 29, and Michael Adebowale, 22, were convicted by a jury in December of murdering off-duty soldier Lee Rigby, a 25-year-old Afghan war veteran in Woolwich, southeast London, in May last year.
Adebolajo received a whole-life term while Adebowale was told he would serve a minimum period of 45 years.
They were sentenced in their absence after being dragged shouting and struggling down to the cells by security guards with whom they had started brawling in the dock as Judge Nigel Sweeney opened his sentencing remarks.
"You decided, between you, and in order to advance your extremist cause, to murder a soldier in public in broad daylight and to do so in a way that would generate maximum media coverage," Sweeney told the Old Bailey court, calling the killing "barbaric."
"Sentence for murder is mandatory - it must be one of life imprisonment," he said ....
PuckChaser said:They wanted death, so they could be martyrs. Now they're locked up like common criminals and kept alive for a very long time so they can't spread their filth elsewhere.
George Wallace said:Unless these two are kept in solitary confinement or otherwise segregated from the general population, there is the possibility that they may poison the minds of other criminals.
One has to do a 45 year minimum. He then may apply for parole, if the UK system is similar to our own.Lightguns said:One fellow will out in time to collect old age pension
Lightguns said:One fellow will out in time to collect old age pension
medicineman said:Assuming he doesn't get shived...