Brahim Kaddour-Cherif, a 24-year-old Algerian convicted sex offender, has been recaptured and returned to HMP Wandsworth after nearly a week on the run. Police conducted a two-day manhunt to locate him following his accidental release.
Kaddour-Cherif was mistakenly released on October 29 due to prison officials confusing his custodial sentence for possessing a knife with a suspended sentence on their computer system. Besides this knife possession offense, he is a registered sex offender and was convicted in November for indecent exposure. For that crime, he received a community order and was placed on the sex offenders' registry for five years.
Incredible footage shows the moment Kaddour-Cherif was arrested at 11:30 a.m. in Finsbury Park, north London. The Metropolitan Police responded quickly after a member of the public spotted him.
“Officers have arrested Brahim Kaddour Cherif who was released in error from HMP Wandsworth on 29 October. Cherif was spotted by a member of the public in Blackhorse Lane, Islington just before 11:30 a.m. Officers responded immediately and he was arrested.”
During the arrest, a police officer confirmed his identity by noting his “distinctive wonky nose.” Despite Kaddour-Cherif’s denial, saying “I am not Brahim,” officers confirmed he was the escaped prisoner.
Brahim Kaddour-Cherif’s accidental release highlights errors in custodial systems and the swift response of police and the public in securing his return to custody.