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A POLICE manhunt for a terror suspect who escaped from prison after “sneaking out of the kitchen and clinging to a delivery van” has continued for its third day.
Ex-soldier and convict Daniel Abed Khalife, 21, escaped HMP Wandsworth, south London, on Wednesday morning.
Khalife was last seen wearing a white t-shirt, red and white chequered trousers, and brown steel-toe cap boots. He is of slim build, has short brown hair, and is around 6ft 2ins tall.
Last night cops seemed to narrow their search, as officers patrolled the 2,400-acre Richmond Park, in South-West London, with police vehicles and choppers seen near the area.
If anyone sees Khalife they are advised not to approach him but to call 999 immediately, quoting reference CAD 1631/06SEP23.
Read our live blog for the latest news and updates…
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‘Nothing is off the table’ in search for missing terror suspect
Police have refused to rule out that Daniel Khalife has left the country, or that he had outside help to escape prison, as the search for the fugitive terror suspect enters its third day.
In a press briefing on Thursday, cops said: “This was a really busy area of London and we’ve had no confirmed sightings in any of that information, which is a little unusual, and perhaps testament to Daniel Khalife’s ingenuity in his escape and some of his movements after his escape.
“He was a trained soldier – so ultimately he has skills that perhaps some sections of the public don’t have.
“He’s a very resourceful individual, clearly, and our experience of him shows that, so nothing is off the table with him at the moment.”
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Guards ‘should have been watching him closer’, says soldier
A former soldier who worked alongside Daniel Khalife said other members who trained with him thought he should have been kept in Belmarsh.
He said: “He’s a trained soldier.
“They should have been watching him a lot closer.
“He’s brave enough and clever enough and has the training to think of stuff like that.
“They should have been watching him a lot closer, especially an intelligent soldier like him.
“He’s a Signal, he’s smart.”
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Jailbreak terror suspect Daniel Khalife ‘was Call of Duty obsessed loner’
Terror suspect Daniel Khalife was a Call of Duty nut whose escape might have been inspired by the game, a former pal said.
Khalife was “obsessed” with the game and might even have been inspired by it to join the British Army in the first place.
The first person shooter has a famous prison break scene in one of the Modern Warfare games.
Khalife was previously stationed at the Ministry of Defence’s Beacon Barracks in Stafford where he was serving in the 22 Signal Regiment.
A former soldier said about his time in Dorset: “He was the first person in his family to sign up to the Army.
“He was a bit of a loner, he was a big gamer – loved Call of Duty.”
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Jailbreak terror suspect Daniel Khalife ‘was Call of Duty obsessed loner’
Terror suspect Daniel Khalife was a Call of Duty nut whose escape might have been inspired by the game, a former pal said.
Khalife was “obsessed” with the game and might even have been inspired by it to join the British Army in the first place.
The first person shooter has a famous prison break scene in one of the Modern Warfare games.
Khalife was previously stationed at the Ministry of Defence’s Beacon Barracks in Stafford where he was serving in the 22 Signal Regiment.
A former soldier said about his time in Dorset: “He was the first person in his family to sign up to the Army.
“He was a bit of a loner, he was a big gamer – loved Call of Duty.”
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Prison watchdog rated Wandsworth as ‘serious concern’
HMP Wandsworth‘s performance was rated as a “serious concern”, with watchdogs issuing a number of warnings in the past year.
The “serious concern” rating came in the Annual Prison Performance Ratings for 2022/23, which was published in July. It also received the same damning rating in 2016/17, 2017/18 and 2018/19.
It received 46.4% in an overall performance score based on measures including rehabilitation, training and security.
In findings published in January 2022 after an inspection in September 2021, chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor warned: “Staffing shortfalls were preventing the prison from running a decent and predictable regime.
“More than 30% of prison officers were either absent or unable to work their full duties.
“Around a quarter were less than a year in post and more than 10% had resigned in the last 12 months.”
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Daniel Khalife’s escape route
Here is the route it is believed Daniel Khalife took when escaping HMP Wandsworth.
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Daniel Khalife’s escape route
Here is the route it is believed Daniel Khalife took when escaping HMP Wandsworth.
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Cops searching for escaped terror suspect Daniel Khalife seal off huge London park as helicopters circle overhead
Cops hunting escaped terror suspect Daniel Khalife sealed off a huge London park last night – as two helicopters circled overhead.
The manhunt appeared to narrow around 40 hours after ex-soldier Khalife, 21, fled HMP Wandsworth wearing his chef’s uniform on Wednesday morning.
Late last night officers were seen guarding every entrance to 2,400-acre Richmond Park, in South-West London.
Police vehicles raced around surrounding roads as choppers circled over the royal park and nearby Wimbledon Common.
A source confirmed to The Sun that the huge police activity around Richmond Park was linked to the ongoing hunt for Khalife.
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Cops searching for escaped terror suspect Daniel Khalife seal off huge London park as helicopters circle overhead
Cops hunting escaped terror suspect Daniel Khalife sealed off a huge London park last night – as two helicopters circled overhead.
The manhunt appeared to narrow around 40 hours after ex-soldier Khalife, 21, fled HMP Wandsworth wearing his chef’s uniform on Wednesday morning.
Late last night officers were seen guarding every entrance to 2,400-acre Richmond Park, in South-West London.
Police vehicles raced around surrounding roads as choppers circled over the royal park and nearby Wimbledon Common.
A source confirmed to The Sun that the huge police activity around Richmond Park was linked to the ongoing hunt for Khalife.
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Who is Daniel Abed Khalife?
Daniel Abed Khalife, 21, was a former soldier who previously served in the British Army.
In January 2023, Khalife, of Beaconside, Stafford, was charged over two incidents at an RAF base.
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How Khalife escaped
Here is how escaped terror suspect Daniel Khalife is believed to have escaped prison.
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Khalife on the dock back in February
Khalife, from Beacon Barracks in Stafford, appeared in court on February 7, this year, wearing a black sweater and blue pants and speaking only to confirm his name and date of birth.
His father sat in the public gallery for the five-minute hearing.
Khalife was remanded in jail by Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring to appear at the Old Bailey on February 17.
He said: “You did not enter a plea. These matters are very serious. If you are convicted you are going to face a prison sentence in years not months. Therefore this court’s powers are insufficient.”
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Deep dive into Khalife’s alleged crimes, continued
During a previous court appearance, he was accused of “eliciting” personal information about soldiers from the Ministry of Defence Joint Personnel Administration System.
And he “attempted to elicit information of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism.”
He has denied all the charges against him.
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Deep dive into Khalife’s alleged crimes
Khalife was being held in prison awaiting trial for terror offences and alleged breaches of the Official Secrets Act.
He was accused of allegedly planting fake bombs at the military base of MOD Stafford.
Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard how he left the devices “with the intention of inducing in another the belief the item was likely to explode or ignite”.
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Contact the police if you have information
If anybody sees Khalife, they are asked not to approach him and to phone 999 immediately, citing reference CAD 1631/06SEP23.
Officers want to hear from anybody who has information that might help them find Khalife, even if it doesn’t pertain to a live sighting.
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Justice Secretary gives timeline of events
Speaking in the Commons yesterday, Justice Secretary Alex Chalk gave a timeline of yesterday’s events.
He said: “At approximately 7.30 yesterday morning, a vehicle which had made a delivery to the prison’s kitchen left HMP Wandsworth.
“Shortly afterwards, local contingency plans for an unaccounted prisoner were activated and in line with standard procedure the police were informed.
“The prison was put into a state of lockdown while staff attempted to determine Daniel Khalife’s whereabouts.
“The vehicle was stopped and searched by police after the alert was raised. Strapping was found underneath the vehicle which appeared to indicate that Daniel Khalife may have held onto the underside of it in order to escape.
“The search is under way. His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service are giving every assistance to the Metropolitan Police’s operation to recapture Daniel Khalife and return him to custody.
“As has been made clear by the Metropolitan Police
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Terror suspect escape ’embarrassing’ and a ‘catastrophic system failure’
A security expert has slammed the process that allowed terror suspect Daniel Khalife to escape from Wandsworth prison.
Professor Ian Acheson, a former head of security at Wandsworth, said Khalife’s escape was “at best” a “catastrophic system failure”.
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “It’s incredibly embarrassing for the prison service but it’s not entirely surprising given what we know about what’s going on Wandsworth at the moment.”
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‘No reason to believe’ Khalife is dangerous, Police chief claims
The head of the Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism Command, Commander Dominic Murphy, said there is “no reason to believe Khalife poses a threat to the wider public” but has urged people not to approach him and to call 999 if they spot him.
The 21-year-old broke out of HMP Wandsworth at 7.50am on Wednesday by clinging to the underside of a food delivery van.
Khalife is thought to have used makeshift straps to attach himself to the truck as it was waved out of the notorious South West London lock-up.
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Prison officers didn’t tell cops ‘terrorist’ Daniel Khalife was missing for an HOUR as it’s revealed he vanished before
Prison officers did not tell police terror suspect Daniel Khalife had escaped until an hour after his disappearance, it is alleged.
The 21-year-old broke out of HMP Wandsworth at 7.50am on Wednesday by clinging to the underside of a food delivery van.
Khalife is thought to have used makeshift straps to attach himself to the truck as it was waved out of the notorious South West London lock-up.
A prison source told The Times that staff at the Victorian Cat-B slammer realised Khalife was missing at around 7am, almost an hour before cops were alerted.
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Who is Daniel Abed Khalife?
Daniel Abed Khalife, 21, was a former soldier who previously served in the British Army.
In January 2023, Khalife, of Beaconside, Stafford, was charged over two incidents at an RAF base.
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How Khalife escaped
Here is how escaped terror suspect Daniel Khalife is believed to have escaped prison.
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Who to contact
If anybody sees Khalife, they are asked not to approach him and to phone 999 immediately, citing reference CAD 1631/06SEP23.
Officers want to hear from anybody who has information that might help them find Khalife, even if it doesn’t pertain to a live sighting.
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Deep dive into Khalife’s alleged crimes, continued
During a previous court appearance, he was accused of “eliciting” personal information about soldiers from the Ministry of Defence Joint Personnel Administration System.
And he “attempted to elicit information of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism.”
He has denied all the charges against him.
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Deep dive into Khalife’s alleged crimes
Khalife was being held in prison awaiting trial for terror offences and alleged breaches of the Official Secrets Act.
He was accused of allegedly planting fake bombs at the military base of MOD Stafford.
Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard how he left the devices “with the intention of inducing in another the belief the item was likely to explode or ignite”.
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Daniel Khalife cops confirm NO official sightings of escaped ‘terrorist’ as they reveal route of van he used to flee
Cops hunting Daniel Khalife have confirmed that there have been no official sightings of the escaped suspected terrorist.
The Met Police has now revealed the route of the van Khalife used to flee Wandsworth Prison in south London yesterday morning – with 150 officers now chasing him.
