One of the largest prisons in the United Kingdom, Wandsworth Prison has a long history, dating back to its establishment in 1851 and was the site of 135 executions, between 1878 and 1961, today we explore 10 notorious inmates once held behind its imposing walls.
10 – James Earl Ray
Born on March 10, 1928, in Alton, Illinois, Ray had a troubled childhood and a history of criminal activities, including armed robbery.
On the evening of April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King Jr. was standing on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel when he was shot by a sniper.
He died shortly afterwards and Ray, who had a history of criminal activities and had escaped from a Missouri state prison, was identified as the prime suspect.
After a global manhunt, James Earl Ray was captured in London’s Heathrow Airport on June 8, 1968 and moved to Wandsworth Prison to await extradition.
He was extradited to the United States and pleaded guilty to the murder of Martin Luther King Jr. on March 10, 1969, a confession he later recanted.
Sentenced to 99 years in prison, he spent the rest of his life attempting to retract his guilty plea, alleging that he was part of a conspiracy and did not act alone, but he died in 1998.
9 – Bruce Reynolds
Reynolds gained notoriety for masterminding one of the most famous and daring heists in British history, known as the Great Train Robbery.
The robbery involved stopping the Glasgow to London mail train in Buckinghamshire where the gang, wearing masks and armed with weapons, overpowered the train’s crew and stole £2.6 million.
After the heist, the gang managed to evade the authorities temporarily, however, Reynolds was arrested in Torquay, Devon, in 1968.
Sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in the robbery, he served about 10 years of his sentence, mostly in Wandsworth, before being released on parole in 1978.
His crime remains one of the most infamous heists in history and Reynolds later became something of a folk hero and his autobiography, “The Autobiography of a Thief,” published in 1995.
8 – Christopher Tappin
Born in 1947, Tappin was the former president of the Kent Golf Union and involved in various business activities.
In 2007, Tappin was accused of conspiring to export components for Iranian missiles.
The charges were related to his alleged involvement in a scheme to export batteries used in Hawk air defense missiles to Iran.
These accusations were a result of a sting operation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
He was arrested and spent much of his time awaiting extradition in Wandsworth, before serving about 11 months of his sentence in a US Federal Prison.
His extradition stirred controversy in the UK, with critics arguing that the U.S.-UK extradition treaty was unfair and that Tappin should have been prosecuted in the UK.
7 – Gary Glitter
In 1997, Gary Glitter faced legal troubles when he was arrested in the United Kingdom on charges related to child pornography.
He was found in possession of thousands of indecent images of children. Glitter was convicted in 1999 and sentenced to four months in prison.
In 2006, Gary Glitter faced more serious charges in Vietnam. He was arrested in Ho Chi Minh City on suspicion of engaging in sexual activities with underage girls.
In 2006, he was convicted of these charges and sentenced to three years in prison.
After serving approximately two years of his sentence in Vietnam, Glitter was released and deported to the United Kingdom in 2008 and, upon his return, he faced further restrictions and monitoring.
In 2014, he was found guilty of attempted rape, four counts of indecent assault, and one count of having sex with a girl under the age of 13 and was sentenced to a further 16 years in prison.
6 – Nirav Modi
Nirav Modi became embroiled in a major financial scandal involving the Punjab National Bank, one of India’s largest public sector banks.
It was revealed that Modi and his uncle Mehul were allegedly involved in fraudulent transactions that led to a substantial financial loss for the bank.
Modi’s family has been involved in the diamond trade for several generations and both his father and uncles were diamond merchants.
The fraud was estimated to be around $1.8 billion, making it one of the largest financial scams in India.
Modi left India and traveled to several countries during the investigation, later being accused of escaping the country.
He was subsequently arrested in London in March 2019 based on an extradition request from Indian authorities, where he spent time at Wandsworth.
5 – Daniel Abed Khalife
Arrested on suspicion of breaching the Official Secrets Act, Khalife was later charged with terror and explosives offences and remanded to Wandsworth.
On 21st July, Khalife appeared at the Old Bailey and pleaded not guilty to charges under the Official Secrets Act and the Terrorism Act.
Little did the prison know that Khalife was about to cause a national incident, and one that would see action at the highest levels of government.
Being held on remand while awaiting trial, Khalife, who had been working in the prison kitchens despite his terror charges, made an audacious bid for freedom.
Wearing a chef’s uniform consisting of a white t-shirt, red and white chequered trousers and brown steel-toe cap boots, he crawled under a food van and managed to escape the prison undetected.
After a roll call flagged him up as missing, additional security checks at British airports and ports commenced and Richmond Park, the largest park in London, was closed.
Three days later, Khalife was re-captured while riding a bicycle after being spotted by a plain clothes police officer.
Charged with escaping from lawful custody in relation to escaping from Wandsworth, and moved to Belmarsh Prison.
4 – Rhys Herbert
Herbert is a British rapper, better known as Digga D, who was heavily associated with the drill music scene.
Arrested on 9 November 2017 for various criminal activities, he was handed a Criminal Behavior Order or, CBO for short.
He was required to wear a GPS tracker on his leg and was required to check in with the probation service, every three hours during daytime.
Recalled to prison in 2019 for breaching the conditions of his CBO, he was attacked and loss the use of his eye while being stabbed with a blade fashioned from a tuna can.
In 2020, pleaded guilty to violent disorder again and further breaches of his CBO and was sentenced to two years and 6 months for his role in a machete brawl with rival gang members.
3 – Tom O’Carroll
Convicted for conspiracy to corrupt public morals in 1981, Carroll was imprisoned for two years.
He picked up his second conviction in 2002 after being found guilty of importing indecent photographs of children from Qatar and was was sentenced to nine-months imprisonment on three counts but the conviction was later overturned.
In 2006 of conspiring to distribute indecent photographs of children after supplying an undercover Metropolitan Police officer with a cache of indecent images of children.
He was found to be involved with several International Pedophile groups and was jailed for 2.5 years at Middle-sex Guildhall Crown Court.
He attempted to join the labour party in 2016, however, was immediately expelled having been placed on the sex offenders register for ten years.
2 – Ronnie Biggs
Second on the list is another famous face, the one and only Ronnie Biggs, who gained international notoriety for his involvement in the Great Train Robbery of 1963.
Becoming one of the most well-known figures in British criminal history, Biggs helped too intercept a Royal Mail train in Buckingham-shire in 1963.
Biggs managed to evade capture for several years by fleeing the UK, first heading to France and then onward’s to Australia.
Eventually, he made his way to Brazil, where he lived for many years as Brazil had no extradition treaty with the United Kingdom, which allowed Biggs to escape imprisonment.
In 2001, facing health issues and financial difficulties, Biggs voluntarily returned to the UK and was immediately arrested and imprisoned.
He was forced to serve the remainder of his original 30-year sentence for his role in the Great Train Robbery but due to his poor health, he was released on compassionate grounds in 2009.
Biggs died on December 18, 2013, at the age of 84, but not before being the subject of numerous books, documentaries, and films.
1 – Ronnie Kray
Notorious and influential in the criminal underworld of London during the mid-20th century, Ronnie Kray, along with his brother became synonymous with organized crime in the 1950’s and 1960’s.
Engaged in activities such as racketeering, extortion, and armed robberies, he cultivated an image of glamour and celebrity connections, befriending influential figures in the entertainment industry.
Ronnie was known for his unpredictable and violent behavior, exhibited signs of mental instability and was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia making him formidable and unpredictable.
One of the most infamous incidents involving the Kray’s was the murder of George Cornell, a rival gang member, in the Blind Beggar pub in 1966.
Ronnie Kray walked into the pub and shot Cornell in cold blood, an act that further solidified the Kray’s reputation for ruthless violence.
In 1968, Ronnie was arrested and convicted of murder, among other charges later receiving a life sentence, spending much of his sentence in psychiatric institutions.
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