A group of convicted killers armed themselves with homemade weapons to attack prison staff after staging a mutiny while using ‘extreme violence’ over ten hours.
The eight mutineers, all serving life sentences at HMP Whitemoor near March, made furniture barricades and weapons created from kettles and broken table legs.
Their rebellion began at noon on October 7 in 2022, when they refused to go back in their cells for the lunch period. Prison staff tried to reason with the group and carried on locking up other prisoners around them. However, staff were soon forced to retreat in fear after being threatened.
(Image: Cambridgeshire Police)
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The prisoners sprayed oil, shower gel, shampoo, and other items on the floor of the spur area of the wing (a self-contained landing or corridor) – meaning it became too slippery to enter. They also overturned different pieces of furniture to build a barricade.
A national prison response team was called in, together with negotiators who had no luck. At 8pm, the national team attempted to enter the spur of the wing but by this point the prisoners had made weapons out of broken table legs and kettles, and had also created protective headwear to shield them from PAVA spray and pyrotechnic flashes.
The prisoners eventually retreated to the cell of one of the group of eight, Korie Hassan, where they built a further barricade – but at about 10pm the national response team regained control and the prisoners were restrained.
Dior Diego Jackson, 27, was the last of the group to be sentenced at Cambridge Crown Court on Friday (20 February), after pleading guilty to violent disorder.
He was sentenced to one year and nine months on top of his existing prison term.
Other members of the group were:
- Rick-Champion Champion Musaba, 30, sentenced to four years on top of his existing sentence after being found guilty of participating in a prison mutiny.
- Nicholas Bridge, 26, sentenced to three years and six months on top of time already served after being found guilty of participating in a prison mutiny.
- Bradley Blundell, 26, sentenced to one year and six months on top of his existing sentence after pleading guilty to violent disorder.
- Irwin Constable, 25, sentenced to three years and six months on top of time served after being found guilty of participating in a prison mutiny.
- Korie Hassan, 33, sentenced to three years and four months on top of his existing time behind bars after admitting violent disorder.
- Jahliel Rose, 29, sentenced to one year and four months on top of his time served after admitting violent disorder.
- Troy Muschett-Thomas, 25, handed one year and six months on top of his existing sentence after pleading guilty to violent disorder.
Detective Constable Emma Purser, who investigated, said: “The eight prisoners involved in this case offered extreme violence towards staff and took control of the prison’s spur area for about ten hours.
“When sentencing, the judge noted that it was only because of the professionalism of the officers who went on to the wing and faced the violence that no-one was seriously hurt.
“All of the prisoners involved are already serving life sentences for murder or conspiracy to murder, but have now received prison terms of at least 16 months on top of the time they are already serving.
“The highest consecutive sentence handed down by the judge was another four years behind bars and overall when added together, the extra time totals 20 years.
“This investigation was a lot of work over the past three years, with hours of CCTV footage to search through and interviews to carry out all over the country.”
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