A prisoner who was set free under Keir Starmer’s early release scheme allegedly harassed a woman only 15 minutes after he stepped out of jail and got arrested again.
The ‘released’ prisoner who got arrested after he harassed the woman is a South London native and denies sexual assault as the trial is ongoing.
A court heard the details of the incident in how the prisoner, Amari Ward sexually assaulted a woman while she gave him a lift to a train station.
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31-year-old Ward however denies the charge and claims he’s innocent. After she drove away from HMP Swaleside last September, the woman said to Ward: ‘I bet you’re glad to be out.’
The prisoner replied by saying he needed oral sex, which the woman reportedly ignored, as she told jurors she believed he was referring to reconnecting with his partner.
The woman stated candidly to Maidstone crown court: ‘He asked if I’d ever filmed myself doing a porno.’
‘I told him absolutely not and I find it inappropriate.’ ‘He asked me if I’d like to make a porn movie with him. I felt very uncomfortable.’
She claimed that as they approached Sittingbourne Railway Station, Ward touched her twice near her groin and asked her to kiss him.
The woman said: ‘I told him to f*** off, pushed his hand away and went to punch him.
‘I believe I connected with his chin.’
Due to the problem of overcrowded jails, the Labour Party launched its early release scheme to try and create space within prisons.
As of November 2024, 3,100 criminals had been freed under the scheme, as per reports.
The Ministry of Justice said 1,889 inmates were freed on the first day of Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood’s scheme in September.
Ward is hoping he comes out clean. However, the woman’s claims seem to align with what cops detected after they arrested the released prisoner, and the next days would provide clarity into what will be the outcome of the case.
