TRIAL DELAY
Who is Daniel Abed Khalife and what did he do?
On the day Khalife allegedly escaped, 80 prison officers — nearly 40 per cent of the jail's employees — skipped their scheduled shifts
DANIEL Abed Khalife made the headlines in September 2023 when a massive police hunt was launched across London when he allegedly escaped from Wandsworth Prison.
But who is the lag and what charges is he facing?
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Who is Daniel Abed Khalife?
Daniel Abed Khalife, 22, is a former soldier who previously served in the British Army.
In January 2023 Khalife, of Beaconside, Stafford, Staffordshire was charged over two incidents at an RAF base.
It has since been alleged that while on remand for those charges at Wandsworth Prison, he escaped from the penitentiary by strapping himself to the bottom of a food delivery truck while working in the prison kitchen.
Khalife was set to face trial on November 13, but a judge at the Old Bailey said that was "wholly unrealistic" and it has now been put back following his prison escape charge.
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A new trial date will be set later.
What crimes did Daniel Khalife allegedly commit?
Daniel was being held in the prison awaiting trial for terror offences and breaches of the Official Secrets Act when he allegedly escaped.
Khalife, who was attached to the Royal Signal Corps before being discharged, is accused of leaving fake bombs at an RAF base in January 2023.
He was said to have vanished for more than three weeks after the bomb hoax — before being arrested on January 26.
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Westminster Magistrates' Court heard how he left the devices "with the intention of inducing in another the belief the item was likely to explode or ignite".
Khalife is also charged under the Official Secrets Act for gathering information that might be useful to an enemy of the UK between May 1, 2019 and January 6, 2022.
He was accused of attempting to "elicit information of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism" about soldiers from the Ministry of Defence Joint Personnel Administration System.
He denied both sets of charges against him.
Khalife also pled not guilty escaping prison and going on the run for four days in September 2023.
The 21-year-old appeared via video link from HMP Belmarsh on September 21.
Khalife, who was wearing a blue and yellow sweatshirt, said: "I am not guilty."
When did Daniel Khalife allegedly escape from Wandsworth prison?
Daniel allegedly fled his cell at HMP Wandsworth, South London, on the morning of September 6, 2023.
A major search operation was launched, with police scouring the capital.
Khalife was eventually arrested 12 miles away in Northolt, West London, by plain-clothes cops on the morning of September 9.
Met counter-terrorism boss Commander Dominic Murphy said more than 150 of his officers had been involved in catching Khalife.
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He said the fugitive was “fully co-operative and handcuffed and arrested”.
On the day he allegedly escaped, 80 prison officers — nearly 40 per cent of the jail's employees — skipped their scheduled shifts.
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