Razor blade found on floor of courtroom dock raises questions over prisoner security

THE blade was discovered on the floor of a NSW court after a fight broke out between two co-accused in the dock, raising serious questions about prisoner screening.

• Downing Centre escape: Prisoner was not wearing handcuffs
• Alleged escapee fronts court after five days on the run

A PRISONER allegedly fearing for his safety smuggled a razor blade into a courtroom by hiding it in his mouth.

Ali Chahine jumped from the dock of a Sydney court.

The razor blade was discovered on the floor of the dock after a fight broke out between two co-accused, with one of the men attacking the other by punching him in the back of the head.

Court staff who witnessed the incident said there had been some shouting between the two men before the punch was thrown.

Court security officers — who broke up the fight within seconds — were forced to ­restrain both men and clear the courtroom.

The blade was located during a sweep of the dock once the men were removed and placed in separate rooms.

The thin metal blade has since been given to NSW police and will undergo DNA testing.

“The matter remains under investigation and it would be inappropriate to comment further,” a police spokeswoman said.

The incident, which ­occurred before the judge presiding over the case had walked into the courtroom, is now the subject of an investigation by Corrective Services NSW and signifies one of the most egregious breaches of courthouse security.

A CSNSW spokesman confirmed a punch was thrown between two inmates in the dock and that a “thin blade” was found during a sweep of the area.

The Downing Centre district court was the scene of two security breaches last year. Photographer Adam Yip

The inquiry will investigate how the blade was smuggled into the dock and past metal detectors.

A law enforcement official said the blade was smuggled into the courtroom by one of the prisoners, despite CCTV footage reviewed by CSNSW finding “it is inconclusive as to where the item came from”. Inmates are strip-searched and scanned with a metal detector prior to their court hearings, while departmental protocol also dictates vehicles used to transport prisoners, and the courts themselves, are searched ­before their appearances.

Legal reasons prevent The Sunday Telegraph from identifying the names of those ­involved, the charges they face and other details relating to the matter.

On Friday, a suppression order which covered the ­entire razor-blade incident was partially lifted following an application made by The Sunday Telegraph.

Corrective Services Minister David Elliott was one of several ministers briefed on the incident, as was Police Minister Troy Grant and ­Attorney-General Gabrielle Upton. Mr Elliott said the matter would form part of a review of protocols.

“Yes I was briefed on the incident. Corrective Services’ security protocols are continually reviewed for improvements,” he said. Ms Upton said yesterday: “Court security is continually being reviewed”.

The smuggling of a razor blade into a courthouse represents a significant failing in existing security protocols, which have been the subject of discussion and analysis in recent months.

Last year the Australian Federal Police confirmed it was conducting a review of courtroom security in NSW amid heightened fears of a terrorist attack.

Several other security breaches have been recorded.

In September prisoner Ali Chahine jumped from the dock of a Sydney court, running past security staff and remaining on the run for several days, evading authorities.

Several months earlier police fortified security at the same court complex following a tip-off that members of a Sydney crime family were planning to disrupt a hearing by shooting at the location.

SHOOTING PLOT AND AN ESCAPE

SEPTEMBER 30, 2015: Ali Chahine, 33, facing charges of drug supply, jumps the dock at Downing Centre Local Court, assaults two security guards, and runs from the court complex without shoes, boarding a bus to make good his escape. He was arrested less than a week later at a unit in Alexandria.

FEBRUARY 19, 2015: Tactical police surround the Downing Centre court complex after intelligence emerged that members of a Sydney crime family were planning to disrupt a hearing and possibly open fire on the building. The hearing involved a member of a separate but more powerful Sydney crime family.

JANUARY 22, 2015: Then-NSW attorney-general Brad Hazzard confirms Australian Federal Police are conducting a review of court security in NSW.