An armed convict escaped from an open prison before using a makeshift weapon to force a nurse to drive him to a cash machine, the Telegraph reports.
The criminal was scheduled to attend a working party at Standford Hill open prison, on the Isle of Sheppy in Kent, but did not show.
Instead, it is understood he went to a car park nearby Swaleside prison and accosted a nurse with an alleged ‘makeshift weapon’.
The convict then ordered the healthcare worker to take him to the nearest village, the Telegraph reports.
He then demanded the alleged victim take out money from a cash point before fleeing the scene.
The individual was arrested on suspicion of kidnap and robbery, senior prison sources have told the publication.
‘This prisoner is back behind bars and police are investigating,’ a Ministry of Justice (MoJ) spokesman told The Telegraph.
‘We take violence against our hard-working staff incredibly seriously and, if found guilty, he will be punished.’
has approached the Ministry of Justice for comment.
Earlier this month it was announced rules on sending criminals to open jails could be relaxed despite fears it would risk worsening unrest.
Open jails have lower security measures and allow inmates to leave the premises during the day to attend work and education.
The Government is looking at allowing inmates to be held in open conditions for up to five years before their release rather than the current three, according to reports.
The separate move could also mean official guidance would permanently alter to allow convicts to be put in open jails even if they warn guards they may flee.
The move was first introduced temporarily under the last government in 2023 but could become permanent, the Observer reported.
Figures obtained by the paper showed that 143 criminals absconded from the lowest security jails in England and Wales between January 2022 and March last year, and prison sources said more went missing over the Christmas period.
According to the Telegraph, it is estimated that there are abbout 60 incidents of absconding from open prisons annually.
National chairman of the Prison Officers’ Association Mark Fairhurst predicted that if the measures go ahead ‘it’s inevitable violence will rise, drug abuse will rise, absconds will rise’.
He said: ‘The open estate is supposed to be trusted conditions. Putting people with five years left into that world is going to destabilise it even further.
‘The majority of people accessing the open estate now would never have previously been transferred, but they’ve relaxed the criteria so much just to fill the space.’
He added at the time: ‘We’ve got people refusing to work, people who are high on spice, people who are just walking out – we had absconds over Christmas.
‘You can just walk out, but you can also walk back in with loads of drugs and alcohol on you because there’s no searches.’
In December, David Gauke who is now leading Labour’s sentencing review, claimed the current overcrowding crisis in UK prisons opened up ‘opportunity’ for change.
He believed that thousands of convicts should be sent to low-security open prisons in a bid to reduce reoffending as well as tackle Britain’s overcrowding issue.
He also said Britain follow Spain as an example, where a much greater proportion of convicted criminals are free to work and study outside prison walls during the day
Speaking to The Times, the former Cabinet minister said Britain does not ‘make as much use of open prisons’ as it could.
He visited three prisons in Spain this month where reforms have included greater use of open prisons, community sentences and house arrests.
In an attempt to ease the overcrowding issue, the former Tory government eased rules to allow category C prisoners in closed to jails to be moved to open facilities if they met criteria for offence and risk.
Now it is understood that ministers are weighing up whether to expand further and permit prisoners to be kept in open jails for as much as five years before their sentence comes to an end, instead of the current three year period.
An MoJ spokesperson told the Telegraph at the time:’Only less-serious offenders who meet strict criteria are eligible for moves to open conditions.
‘The Prison Service can exclude anyone who can’t be managed safely in a Category D prison.
‘Those who abscond face serious consequences, including being returned to closed conditions and serving an additional two years.’