Twenty-five convicted killers are free to roam the streets of Lancashire despite serving life sentences - and they don't all return

Dozens of killers are being kept at Kirkham open prison amid concerns dangerous inmates are being wrongly moved out of more secure facilities.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

And many are being allowed out on day release, with an investigation revealing 25 criminals convicted of murder or manslaughter were given permission to leave over a 12 month period.

While most return, the prison having put a raft of measure in place to stop prisoners going on the run, some flee, sparking police manhunts and urgent warning to the public.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The figures, released following a Freedom of Information request, come amid concerns among staff that unsuitable prisoners are being sent to HMP Kirkham.

Top left: 'Dangerous' Thomas Parkinson, who stabbed a man to death at a house party. Top right: Paul Creedy, who went on the run after leaving his robbery victim to drown in a canal.Top left: 'Dangerous' Thomas Parkinson, who stabbed a man to death at a house party. Top right: Paul Creedy, who went on the run after leaving his robbery victim to drown in a canal.
Top left: 'Dangerous' Thomas Parkinson, who stabbed a man to death at a house party. Top right: Paul Creedy, who went on the run after leaving his robbery victim to drown in a canal.

More than 200 prisoners – equivalent to roughly a third of the current prison population – were shipped back out in the space of a year for violence and other disciplinary offences.

Fylde MP Mark Menzies said: “I understand Kirkham prepares prisoners at the end of their sentences for a return to civilian life – but the prison authorities must ensure only suitable prisoners, who have demonstrated full remorse for their actions and a desire to play a full role in society, are transferred to Kirkham.

“I have nothing but admiration for the officers at the prison who do an amazing job in rehabilitating prisoners and preparing them for life after their sentences.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I understand there has been a fall in absconds of around two thirds in the past decade, and that is welcome.

“However I will be writing to the Justice Minister to question the vetting process of prisoners sent to Kirkham, to ensure it is the appropriate next step for a prisoner and that they pose no risk to the public.”

Last May, Thomas Parkinson, then 31, who was serving a life sentence for stabbing a 23-year-old reveller to death at a Preston house party, climbed out of a window and fled.

He evaded police for more than two weeks before being caught, prompting to police to warn the public “not to approach him”.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

His disappearance, which ended when a drunk pal took him to a McDonald’s drive-through in Southport, led to anger from residents.

Adam Gee asked: “So this is a dangerous person who should not be approached, in a prison where anyone can just walk out. Am I missing something?”

Killer Paul Creedy also spent two weeks on the run after absconding in August, with the force again warning he posed a danger and to stay away.

The then 26-year-old, who was given 10 years inside for manslaughter after he and his fellow gang members pushed a man into a canal and left him to drown during a crime spree, was hunted down to Manchester.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

According to the Ministry of Justice, open prisons should “only house prisoners that have been risk-assessed and deemed suitable”.

But an annual inspection of HMP Kirkham by the Independent Monitoring Board said back in May that there were still “prisoners unsuitable for transfer” to an open facility being sent to the Fylde facility.

It was despite concerns over the problem being raised in a previous report.

May’s findings included that “a number of those who arrived at Kirkham were unsuitable” to be placed in such a low-security facility, with 243 people moved back to stricter closed prisons.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

It is not known what they had been imprisoned for but among the 636 inmates at Kirkham in September, there were around 50 convicted of killing – or attempting to kill – someone, as well as dozens of violent offenders.

The number of people being moved back to closed prisons, usually for disciplinary offences, means “without a doubt” people are being wrongly shipped there, Mick Pimblett from the Prison Officers’ Association said.

He added: “Those allocations would be inappropriate, and those are only the ones that are being discovered.”

Though parole boards determine whether killers and other serious offenders are fit for life in an open prison, Mr Pimblett said there is pressure on the system because of a shortage of spaces in closed prisons like HMP Preston.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“For every person being sent to a closed prison, we have to make space for them, and the easiest way to make space is to move people to open prisons,” he said.

Some 19 prisoners have absconded from Kirkham so far this financial year, Government figures showed, making Kirkham the joint worst – alongside Sudbury in Derbyshire – in the country, although historically the figure has been far higher.

“It is worth noting that absconds from HMP Kirkham have fallen by more than 90 per cent in the last 20 years, and the number has dropped by two-thirds in the last decade across the estate,” the Prison Service said.

“We work closely with the police to recapture absconders and they face a return to tougher, closed conditions when caught.”