Kempsey Prison: Vicious ‘e4e’ attack was just one of many in a bloated jail system
THREE prison officers have been put on workers compensation in a week after a spate of violent attacks at a north coast jail.
THREE prison officers have been put on workers compensation in a week after a spate of violent attacks at a north coast jail — including an alleged Islamic State-inspired attack last Thursday.
Alleged IS supporter Bourhan Hraichie, 18, is accused of carving “e4e” into his 40-year-old cellmate’s head and pouring boiling water on him on Thursday at Kempsey jail, leading to Corrective Services minister David Elliott suspending the jail’s general manager Greg Steele.
The “e4e” reference is understood to be a reference to the terrorist group’s “eye for an eye” slogan.
Hraichie, a maximum security prisoner was put in the same cell as a minimum security inmate, who claimed to have served as an ADF soldier in East Timor, despite prison officers reporting the teenager was radicalised and dangerous.
However the man’s claim of being a veteran is being investigated by the department, with Mr Elliot revealing the man admitted “he had not served in the Australian Regular Army or on overseas military operations in East Timor or anywhere else.”
“His mother also said she knew nothing of her son’s military service,” Mr Elliott said.
“It is important to note that the man’s background does not change the seriousness of this incident.”
But the alleged terror-inspired attack is just one of a run of violent incidents at Kempsey jail, with the prison officers union, the Public Service Association, claiming officers are afraid for their safety.
On Saturday, two prisoners were involved in a brawl after a disagreement about cells, and on Monday April 4, two corrective services officers were bashed by an inmate after he was refused medication.
The inmate allegedly punched a prison officer who told him to stop screaming at medical staff, and another officer was injured trying to restrain the inmate.
Chairman of the prison officers branch of the PSA Steve McMahon said managers at Kempsey were repeatedly ignoring warnings from officers about dangerous inmates, including Hraichie.
“What we are witnessing in jails is severe overcrowding. We are above maximum capacity,” Mr McMahon said.
“[Prison officers’] main concerns at the moment is that managers need to be taking their concerns seriously. Reports are not given the gravity they need, and they are concerned about their safety.”
Opposition corrective services spokesman Guy Zangari said the NSW prison system was dangerously mismanaged.
“Prison guards should be able to go into work of a morning and expect that they’ll be home at night. Under Corrective Services Minister David Elliott this sadly isn’t the case,” Mr Zangari said.
The NSW jail population reached a record high of 12,121 in February.
