Preston prisoner granted early release by Keir Starmer sent back to jail after striking again
One of the first inmates let out of jail early under Sir Kier Starmer’s plan to ease prison over-crowding is back inside for stealing cars in Preston.
Jamie Rawling-O’Grady was released from the city’s jail in September among the first batch of 1,700 convicts freed by the Labour Government across the UK.
The serial burglar and car thief had been serving three years for stealing a £33,000 Mercedes and selling it for £100 when he was shown the door as one of 14 released from HMP Preston.
But he was recalled to serve the remainder of his sentence after being convicted of another vehicle theft – he will not now be freed until February next year.
This week the 34-year-old from Preston appeared before a judge Crown Court after admitting stealing a VW Golf worth £19,500 in June 2023.
The court heard the car had been parked by its owner in St Paul’s Road, Preston, around the corner from her home in St George’s Road.
The following day she noticed the car keys, left on a hook behind the front door, had gone. The car had also disappeared. The car was later discovered after being damaged in a collision.
In another incident, for which Rawling-O’Grady had already been dealt with, three Mercedes cars owned by Preston dealer Philip Barker and worth a total of £56,450 were stolen from his home in Fulwood.
The keys for all three vehicles had been left on a tray in the kitchen and burglars had got into the house through a small window.
CCTV from Mr Barker’s house showed three men stealing the vehicles.
All three cars were found in the Whinfield Lane area of Ashton. In one of them was a mobile phone belonging to the son of the VW Golf owner.
Adam Brown, prosecuting, said a footprint from the scene was found to be a match for shoes worn by Rawling-O’Grady.
Sharon Watson, for Rawling-O’Grady, said that after his release from Preston Prison two months early on September 9 – the first day of Labour’s much publicised scheme – her client had kept clear of crime apart from “one or two blips”.
She said all his offending – 18 previous convictions for 43 offences – had been committed due to his use of Class A drugs. He had since been engaging with a drug charity and was now clean.
“He is determined to remain drug-free,” she said. “His parents will continue to support him as long as he remains drug-free and they are confident he will.”
Rawling-O’Grady pleaded guilty to burglary of the house in St George’s Road, theft of the VW Golf and also driving it without authority.
He was sentenced to 15 months for the burglary, nine months for theft and six months for driving the vehicle, all concurrent. They will run alongside his current recall period and will not affect his release date of February 2026.