Heat-seeking cameras used in park hunt for escaped suspected terrorist prisoner

08 September 2023 , 06:16

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A CCTV image of the vehicle searched by police in the operation has been issued (Image: PA)

Two helicopters with heat-seeking cameras are circling Richmond Park in the hunt for escaped prisoner Daniel Abed Khalife.

The former soldier, 21, could be using his army training to hide in the 2,400-acre royal parkland, it is believed. The nearest entrance to Richmond Park is around three miles from HMP Wandsworth.

Metropolitan Police confirmed this morning's activity at Richmond Park is linked to Khalife. One source close to the investigation, though, said they'd be surprised if Khalife, a computer specialist, was so close to the Category B jail.

Police are pictured at Richmond Park in the early hours (GMB)

"If I was him I'd be hundreds of miles away from Wandsworth but we have to be certain he's not on our doorstep. The van he was in was a couple of miles from Richmond Park so it has to be searched – and from the air is the easiest way," the source told Mail Online. The park often indicates online if it is ever closed for various reasons but nothing has been shared on social media today.

The terror suspect fled HMP Wandsworth on Wednesday morning by strapping himself underneath a food delivery van. Yesterday though, Justice secretary Alex Chalk said "no stone will be unturned" in the hunt for the Khalife and stressed he "will be found and made to face justice".

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A map shows the movement of police presence in and around the parkland - and in the air above it (GMPSA)

Khalife fled HMP Wandsworth on Wednesday morning (Sky News)

Airports across the nation went into chaos on Wednesday as Border Force agents carried out stringent checks to make sure the former soldier hadn't left the country. His escape has posed serious questions about the suitability of his incarceration at the Category B prison in southwest London.

Khalife was born in London and is of Middle Eastern heritage. He has a mum and twin sister who lived in Richmond, southwest London, up until a few years ago, it has been reported. A neighbour told The Daily Telegraph: "A woman lived upstairs who had a son and daughter. The boy would come and go swearing loudly. She moved to Wales roughly three years ago – a year after we moved in... It's worrying to think that this young man might head back to this area after escaping from prison."

It is unclear if Khalife has any other siblings, though it is believed he was raised in affluent Kingston-upon-Thames, a suburb in the capital's far southwest reaches.

Bradley Jolly