Fears father still in prison 19 years after laptop theft under ‘scandalous’ IPP sentence

A father trapped under a indefinite prison sentence for a laptop theft nearly 20 years ago still has no release date after he was recalled to prison for missing a hospital appointment.

Abdullahi Suleman’s devastated wife, Bernadette Emerson, has accused the prison system of “exploiting” his mental health to keep him incarcerated under an abolished law. Prison for Public Protection (IPP) prison sentence.

The 41-year-old man, who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, he was sentenced to a minimum of three years and 276 days for robbery at age 22.

But he is still languishing in prison 19 years later – despite having committed no further crimes – being returned to prison four times after attending mental health care became part of his license conditions.

In total, he has served almost 15 years of the last 19 years in custody and is currently back in prison with little hope of being released.

His case was considered “scandalous” by the former president of the justice committee Mr. Bob Neillwho said it was a clear example of the “vicious circle” of deteriorating mental health suffered by many IPP prisoners.

Sir Bob urged the new government to have the courage to follow the committee’s recommendation to send back almost 3,000 prisoners still under sentence, warning: “This needs to happen now.”

Mrs. Emerson insisted that her husband should receive “treatment rather than punishment” as she demanded immediate help for IPP prisoners.

The 39-year-old man said The Independent: “It’s really wrong. They are violating your human rights. They are exploiting your illness.”

IPP prison sentences – under which offenders received a minimum but not maximum tariff – were overturned in 2012 due to human rights concerns. But the abolition of the policy did not affect those already convicted, leaving thousands of people imprisoned for years beyond their original prison sentences.

According to the latest figures published this week, around 2,734 people are still incarcerated under the abolished sentence – a drop of just 6% since last year. It is estimated that 700 served at least 10 years longer than their minimum rate.

Suleman, a trained bricklayer and plasterer who fled conflict in Somalia as a child in search of a better life in Britain, was issued an IPP in 2005 for a laptop theft in a Cardiff park.

He served six years before being released for the first time, but was recalled two and a half years later after suffering a mental health relapse in the community.

Doctors gave him a treatment plan, which was then added to the strict conditions of his license. So, when he missed a hospital appointment, he was recalled to prison – despite having committed no further crimes.

In the years that followed, he was recalled three more times. On each occasion, he was linked to “mental health failure”, his wife said, adding that his detention had now become “arbitrary”.

Emerson, from Cardiff, said each recall tears her family apart, leaving her alone to raise her three daughters aged nine, 10 and 19.

He was last returned to prison in 2017 and served almost another seven years without being released as his mental health continued to deteriorate.

“It really affected him psychologically,” Emerson said.. “He always describes immense psychological torture. I feel like this interrupted his life. This prevented him from moving forward with his sentence and starting his life.

“It affected every aspect. It affected him being a father.

“I think it’s painful for him to have lost so much of his adulthood with the sentence.”

Mrs. Emerson’s anxiety about her husband’s situation increased recently when she lost contact with him for nearly a month. She said a lawyer told her he had been stabbed at scandal-hit category B prison HMP Swaleside in Kent.

The Independent understands that the Ministry of Justice is unable to find evidence of an assault and a spokesperson said an error on Suleman’s phone bill has now been corrected – and apologized for the distress caused.

Mrs. Emerson said that when she finally heard from her husband on Friday, he seemed unwell and spoke quickly. “I’m so happy to be back in touch with him,” she added.

Ms Emerson criticized the introduction of a “PPI Action Plan” which she said repeatedly interfered with Suleman’s mental health care in prison.

“I’m 39 now. It feels like my twenties and thirties were dominated by the impact and struggles of IPP,” she said, adding that they are planning to explore the possibility of appealing their sentence after another Welshman, Leighton Williams, had his IPP sentence overturned. earlier this year.

“It’s suffocating when I think there is no end. When you have a loved one in prison with a mental illness, it only makes your anxiety worse.”

Activist Shirley Debono, co-founder IPP Committee in Action with Ms Emerson, supported calls for Suleman to be transferred to a mental health center where he could recover and she called for the newly elected Labor government to return all IPP prisoners.

She said she was “very disappointed” by the new prisons minister’s speech James Timpsonwhich said IPP sentences would not be reviewed under a sentencing review to help alleviate prison overcrowding.

Sir Bob, who was chairman of the justice committee before stepping down as MP earlier this year, condemned Suleman’s case as “scandalous” as he blamed the State for the 41-year-old’s deteriorating mental health.

“This is outrageous, and this was done to him by the State, and the State has an obligation to address this because it continues to harm people,” he said. The Independent.

A 2022 justice committee report urged the previous government to re-sentence all IPP prisoners, but this was rejected. Plans have been approved to reduce the IPP license period from 10 years to three years.

“What this demonstrates is something our committee has said about IPP prisoners,” he said. “The way IPP sentences worsen the mental health of prisoners, so they are trapped in a vicious circle, because their mental health deteriorates, so they are worried about releasing them – but that is what the State does by putting them in IPP sentences. And it seems that this is what happened to the unfortunate man here.”

Sir Bob urged the new Labor government to implement the reform, demanding: “It needs to happen now.”

He added: “There has been a lack of courage on both sides of the House on this issue. People are very afraid, but they need to have the courage to know when something is wrong – the start of a five-year term is the ideal time.”

Richard Garside, director of the Center for Crime and Justice Studies, said prisoners face immense difficulty escaping the “drag net” of return to prison, which often includes return for minor infractions.

He added: “If he had received the usual determinate sentence, he would have been released a long time ago and, if he had no further problems, would have simply been able to get on with his life.”

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “We have now rectified the error with Mr Suleman’s phone bill PIN and his family has been contacted. We apologize for the inconvenience this has caused.

“It is true that IPP sentences have been abolished. The Lord Chancellor is committed to working with organizations and campaign groups to ensure appropriate action is taken to support those still serving IPP sentences.”