CCTV images have been released of a jailed asylum seeker who was accidentally freed from prison – as police detailed the last sighting of him.
Hadush Kebatu was released in error from HMP Chelmsford on Friday instead of being handed over to immigration officials for deportation – one month into a 12-month sentence.
As the manhunt continues, the images show him in the Essex town on Friday and later the same day in Dalston, east London, where he was carrying a “distinctive white bag with pictures of avocados on it”, said the Metropolitan Police.
The Ethiopian national had been found guilty in September of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl and a woman in Epping.
His crimes while staying at The Bell Hotel in Epping sparked weeks of protests over the summer.
Timeline of how manhunt for wrongly-released sex offender migrant Hadush Kebatu has unfolded
Wrongly-released migrant ‘tried to return to prison 4 or 5 times’, witness says
Father of teenage girl sexually assaulted by migrant sex offender reacts to his accidental release
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The Met Police, which has been leading the search for Kebatu, alongside Essex Police and the British Transport Police, has made a direct appeal Kebatu to hand himself in.
He left Chelmsford train station at 12.42pm on Friday and arrived at Stratford station in east London soon after at 1.12pm.
Kebatu had since taken “a number of journeys” across London and had “access to funds”, according to Met Commander James Conway.
Last sighting
The force said he was last seen shortly before 8pm on Friday evening in the Dalston area of Hackney in east London.
It has released two CCTV images of him from Friday, one in Chelmsford where he was wearing his prison-issued, grey tracksuit and holding a clear, plastic bag containing his possessions.
The other was taken in Dalston, where he was still wearing his grey tracksuit, but was carrying his belongings “in a distinctive white bag with pictures of avocados on it”.
A Met statement added: “Additional officers have been deployed to the area to carry out further searches, but we are appealing for the help of local residents to report any sightings as soon as possible.”
Mr Conway has asked for members of the public who have given assistance to Kebatu to contact them or anyone who sees him to call 999.
And in a direct appeal to Kebatu, Mr Conway added: “We want to locate you in a safe and controlled way.
“You had already indicated a desire to return to Ethiopia when speaking to immigration staff, the best outcome for you is to make contact directly with us by either calling 999 or reporting yourself to a police station.”
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Meanwhile, a lorry driver, who was delivering equipment to Chelmsford jail on Friday, told Sky News correspondent Tom Parmenter he saw the “confused” offender outside the facility being directed by prison staff to the town’s railway station following his release.
The witness, called Sim, said Kebatu came out of the jail saying, “Where am I going? What am I doing?” and hanging around for about 90 minutes as he tried to find out where he should be going.
Sim said the offender returned to the prison “four or five times” but was turned away.
He said Kebatu knew he should be deported but the prison staff were “basically sending him away” and saying to him, “Go, you’ve been released, you go”.
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Kebatu was spotted later in Chelmsford town centre asking for assistance before getting on a train to London.
HM Prison and Probation Service is introducing new and mandatory procedures for prisoner releases after Kebatu was mistakenly freed, Ministry of Justice sources say.
Duty governors, who are responsible for the daily secure operation of prisons, will now be required to complete additional checks the evening before a release, it is understood.
Governors will need to provide assurance that the procedure is in place on Monday, Sky News understands.
Justice Secretary David Lammy said on Friday night that Kebatu was “at large in London”. He said he was “livid on behalf of the public” and added that he had launched an investigation.
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Sir Keir Starmer said he was “appalled” at the accidental release and said it was “totally unacceptable”, adding: “This man must be caught and deported for his crimes.”
A prison officer has been taken off duties to discharge prisoners while an investigation takes place.
