Fifth prisoner sentenced after violent mutiny

The violence erupted at the jail on in September 2019

A fifth man has been sentenced for his part in a prison mutiny that saw staff being struck with pool balls, barricades being built and fires started.

More than £100,000 of damaged was caused at high-security HMP Long Lartin in Worcestershire in 2019.

Specialist Tornado teams were brought in to quell the violence and regain control of the wing.

Steven Jones, 41, was given a 40-month sentence at Worcester Crown Court in addition to the sentence he is already serving after admitting his role in the mutiny.

The violence erupted on 24 September when prison staff came under attack from inmates throwing the pool balls at them and prompting them to withdraw.

About 20 inmates managed to take control of a wing and proceeded to smash CCTV cameras, set floods and built barricades before starting a fire, West Mercia Police said.

Riot-trained teams

Riot-trained teams were deployed from prisons across the country, including from Birmingham, Bristol, Woodhill, Bullingdon, Featherstone, Brinsford, Oakwood and Cardiff.

Once inside the jail, they regained control of the wing within 10 minutes, the force added.

Other inmates involved in the disorder were sentenced in May.

Jones, who was sentenced on Friday, will not now be released until 2041.

Two other defendants have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentence, the force said.

Det Ch Insp Mark Bellamy, who led the investigation, said: “Along with the cost by the damage caused, it is important to highlight the impact this incident had on the wider communities of Herefordshire and Worcestershire.

"Teams from the fire service, the ambulance service and West Mercia Police were committed for two days during the mutiny, taking valuable services away from our local communities.”