“Serious risk of harm to public”

Damning report

Barker and pal Anthony Agnew donned balaclavas and armed themselves with knives before bursting into a home in Tenterden Drive, Canterbury, last February.

Canterbury Crown Court heard the pair thought they had been wronged by Shaun Phillips.

During the raid, Barker held a knife to the face of Phillips’ mum and then held it to her 16-year-old daughter’s stomach.

Barker, who has convictions for assault occasioning actual bodily harm, battery and burglary, was told by Judge Adele Williams he poses a “serious risk of harm to the public” and would have to serve at least eight years before he was eligible for release.

It is not known why Barker posted that he will be home in December 2015.

He also admitted a wounding charge after smashing a bottle over the head of Clinton Garrett. A damning independent report published in June showed the discovery of phones in HMP Rochester had jumped from just three to 69 in a year.

The number of random drugs tests failed by prisoners had also increased from less than 1% to more than 20% in the same time, with 169 coming back positive.

The report’s author, Godfrey Featherstone, blamed staff shortages for a drop in routine cell searches, adding there were “serious concerns” about “drugs and contraband becoming much more freely available”.

He wrote: “Mobile phones, drugs and other unauthorised items are still recovered, but on the basis of intelligenceled information, rather than routine search.

“Checks on visitors have become progressively intelligence-led and consequently deemed to be more cost effective.

“However, finds of contraband amongst visitors have not increased significantly, suggesting that either searches of visitors are less effective or that the items are coming in by other means.”

He goes on to say offenders leaving their wings are no longer searched, sparking fears they could be passing phones and drugs to each other.

He said: “As drugs and mobile telephones become more accessible, the risk of serious issues arising becomes much greater.

“TMore needs to be done to reduce the supply of contraband into the prison by increased searching by dogs and the prosecution of those found to be supplying and possessing contraband.”

Commenting on the report this week, Juliet Lyon, director of the Prison Reform Trust, said: “Cuts to prison staff and budgets should not be made at the expense of the safety and security of people in prison or victims on the outside.

“The government should ensure budget cuts do not compromise the ability of staff to provide a decent regime for prisoners or promote effective opportunities for rehabilitation.”