The families of Manchester Arena bomb victims have told of their ‘absolute disbelief’ that an ‘evil’ terrorist killer was able to attack prison officers.
In a moving letter to the Justice Secretary, five ‘broken’ families said it was ‘beyond comprehension’ that the ‘evil Hashem Abedi has been allowed to cause danger to life’ as they called for the terrorist to be locked up in solitary confinement for life.Police are now investigating whether the 28-year-old serving a minimum 55-year sentence was aided by accomplices after he hurled hot cooking oil over three officers on Saturday before stabbing and slashing them with home-made weapons at HMP Frankland, County Durham.
Now victims’ relatives want assurances that Abedi ‘cannot be allowed to hurt anyone else’.
Just hours after the letter was sent ministers moved to ban Britain’s most dangerous criminals from cooking in prison kitchens amid fears of a copycat attack.
Around 100 of the most serious offenders locked up in the highest security jails in the UK have been blocked from using knives and other potentially lethal implements in self-cook kitchens, as experts warn of a ‘national crisis’ with ‘a collapse of security and safety for both staff and prisoners’.
In a joint letter from the families of Megan Hurley, 15, Eilidh Macleod, 14, Chloe Rutherford, 17, Liam Curry, 19 and Kelly Brewster, 32, who died when Abedi’s brother Salman detonated a bomb at a Ariana Grande concert, relatives said: ‘We are writing in absolute disbelief’ that, once again, the ‘evil Hashem Abedi has been allowed to cause danger to life…
‘Our beautiful, beloved children who were so tragically murdered along with 16 others in the Manchester Arena terror attack in May 2017. We find this situation beyond comprehension.’
The families say they understood prison to mean ‘confinement in a cell for 23 hours a day, meals served through a hatch, and a single hour outside the cell, accompanied by a prison officer’, which they described as ‘the very minimum measure of justice for the devastation he caused.’
The letter goes on: ‘In our view, he should not be allowed any privileges whatsoever while serving a sentence for the deaths of 22 innocent lives and the injuring of many more.
‘He should not have access to anything that he can weaponise, such as hot oil or items he can turn into blades.
‘His continuing violence in prison, attacking prison officers in Belmarsh and now attempting to murder three more, shows he feels no remorse and has no respect for human life.
‘We send our heartfelt sympathies to the three prison officers who were injured on Saturday, as well as their families. Hashem Abedi cannot be allowed to hurt anyone else.
‘As broken families, we firmly believe the appropriate punishment for this individual should be permanent solitary confinement. In truth, anything harsher would be more fitting.’
It comes just a day after MPs warned in the Mail that ministers must stop appeasing jailed terrorists following a succession of attacks behind bars which have exposed serious security failures in Britain’s overcrowded prisons.
On Sunday, John Mansfield, 63, who was jailed for life for the murder of his 63-year-old neighbour Ann Alfanso, was killed by another inmate at HMP Whitemoor near March, Cambridgeshire, in an unrelated incident.
Now terrorists, extremists and violent offenders in prison close supervision units and separation centres have been told they can no longer use self-cook kitchens, amid fears inmates could lash out with knives or cause injury with boiling hot food or water.
In a pre-meditated attack, Abedi is said to have hoarded sachets of margarine to melt down into a scalding oil before launching a stabbing spree with two 20cm homemade bladed weapons he had fashioned from a baking tray.
Police have yet to speak to the suspect, who has been transferred to HMP Full Sutton, York to prevent him associating with potential accomplices.
But after the Prison Officers’ Association (POA) raised fears of a ‘call to arms’ to other jailed terrorists, governors moved quickly to close self-cook kitchens in six close supervision centres, which hold some of the most dangerous men in the prison system who have committed serious, often repeated violence while behind bars.
Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick said: ‘On Saturday a terrorist attacks prison officers in the unit designed to contain extremists.
‘On Sunday, a murderer kills in the unit designed to contain the most violent offenders.
‘Governors and the Ministry of Justice have lost control. It’s time they got a grip.’
Former prison governor Professor Ian Acheson said: ‘This is now turning into a national crisis.
‘Two violent incidents over the weekend at our highest security prisons have lifted the lid on a collapse of security and safety for both staff and prisoners.
‘This is completely unacceptable. But it is also becoming normalised.’
Sir Keir Starmer acknowledged that something had gone ‘terribly wrong in the management’ of Abedi, who had a history of attacking prison officers.
The Prime Minister’s spokesman said: ‘The Prime Minister is appalled by the attack that we saw at the weekend and his thoughts are with the officers involved.
‘Prison staff work around the clock to keep the country safe and we will never tolerate the violence that is targeted towards them.
‘It's clear that something went terribly wrong in the management of this offender and the Government is committed to carrying out an investigation to urgently get answers.’
POA General Secretary Steve Gillan has now written to the Justice Secretary demanding that officers are given personal protective equipment like stab-proof vests.
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: ‘Our thoughts remain with the victims of the Manchester Arena bombing and their families who are understandably concerned by the shocking attack at HMP Frankland this weekend.
‘We've already taken immediate action to suspend access to kitchens in separation and close supervision centres.’