Helena Wilkinson
News correspondent

The Met Police has directly appealed to Kebatu to hand himself in, but we obviously don't know if the migrant convicted sex offender realises there is a huge manhunt for him.

And he is likely to be just as confused as everybody else about how he's ended up wandering the streets of London in his prison-issued tracksuit instead of being taken to an immigration detention centre.

He should have been aware that at the end of his sentence he was going to be deported.

In the video we've seen of Kebatu in Chelmsford town centre after he was mistakenly released, he's chatting to members of the public. It looks like he's getting directions from them.

The police are now trawling through hours and hours of CCTV footage.

They'll also be relying heavily on the public who will be key in helping track Kebatu down.

Reacting to reports that Hadush Kebatu tried to return to prison but was repeatedly turned away before travelling to London, Marie Goldman, the Liberal Democrat MP for Chelmsford, says she "didn't think this story could have got worse".

But she says it appears the Prison Service had several chances to fix the error and failed.

"The government now has serious questions to answer and major work to do to make the system fit for purpose. It certainly isn't at the moment," she adds.

A little earlier, we reported that Met Police Commander James Conway called on Hadush Kebatu to turn himself in - reminding him he'd expressed a desire to be deported only last month.

During his sentencing hearing, Kebatu’s defence barrister Molly Dyas said his “firm wish is to be deported as soon as possible", as he had been suffering with his mental health.

Under the UK Borders Act 2007,, external a 'deportation order' must be made where a foreign national has been convicted of an offence and has received a custodial sentence of at least 12 months.

This applies to Kebatu, who had been sentenced to 12 months in prison following his trial.

Helena Wilkinson
News correspondent

When Kebatu was sentenced at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court in September, the District Judge also made a Sexual Harm Prevention Order against him.

Such an order is put in place to protect the public.

In his sentencing remarks District Judge Williams said he was "satisfied" that Kebatu posed a risk of sexual harm to female adults and children.

He added: "There is a significant risk of you committing a further sexual offence and the lack of any explanation for your behaviour suggests not only that you pose a risk, but that your behaviour is unpredictable."

The order lasts for five years and means there are certain things that Kebatu is prohibited from doing and is required to do.

• Kebatu boarded a train on Friday from Chelmsford station at 12:42 BST, arriving at Stratford station in London at 13:12 BST
• He left prison wearing a prison-issued grey tracksuit, holding a clear plastic bag containing his possessions
• He has made several train journeys across London since he was erroneously released
• Kebatu is believed to have access to funds
• He has sought assistance from members of the public and station staff in both Chelmsford and London

Conway continues, saying that the force believes that Kebatu has sought assistance from members of the public both in Chelmsford and London and urges anyone who might know where he is to make contact.

New footage of Kebatu in London will be released later today, says Conway. He asks anyone who has seen the person in the footage to call 101.

He next makes a direct appeal to Kebatu: "We want to locate you in a safe and controlled way," he says.

Conway adds that Kebatu had indicated a desire to return to Ethiopia. "The best outcome for you is to make contact directly with us by either calling 999 or reporting yourself to a police station," Conway says.

We can now bring you an update from Met Police Commander James Conway, following the mistaken release of asylum seeker and sex offender Hadush Kebatu.

He says his force is pursuing all possible lines of enquiry.

Conway adds that Kebatu has made a number of train journeys across the London area, reiterating he boarded train to London on Friday.

He confirms Kebatu was released wearing a grey suit and carrying a bag. A video we shared earlier on this page shows a man matching Kebatu's appearance on a high street in Chelmsford

They believe he has access to funds.

29 June: Kebatu arrives in the UK on a small boat having travelled through Sudan, Libya, Italy and France

7 July: Kebatu makes sexually-explicit remarks to a 14-year-old who was eating a pizza with her friend in Epping town centre

8 July: He sexually assaults a woman, trying to kiss her. He does the same to the girl he sexually assaulted the day before, whom he encounters by chance. The woman, when seeing Kebatu with the girl, calls 999. He is arrested overnight

10 July: Kebatu denies charges of sexual assault, appearing at Chelmsford Magistrates Court for the first time

26 August: Kebatu's trial begins

27 August: The asylum seeker denies the offences, telling the trial: "I'm not a wild animal"

4 September: Kebatu is found guilty of two counts of sexual assault, one count of attempted sexual assault, one count of inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity, and one count of harassment without violence

23 September: Kebatu is sentenced to 12 months in prison and ordered to sign the Sex Offenders' Register for 10 years. He's also told he's facing deportation

24 October: Kebatu is accidentally released from HMP Chelmsford instead of being sent to an immigration detention centre to be deported

25 October: Essex Police says officers are working with the Metropolitan Police and British Transport Police as Kebatu is believed to be in the London area

Sima Kotecha
Senior UK correspondent

Prison sources have confirmed to the BBC that staff from HMP Chelmsford led Hadush Kebatu away from the prison and towards the station.

This confirmation follows reports that Kebatu had been seen returning to the prison, only to be turned away by staff and directed to the station.

HMP Chelmsford is a category B men's prison in Chelmsford, Essex, in the east of England.

It houses male inmates over 18 and young offenders.

Prisons in England and Wales are assigned a category from A to D, depending on the level of security needed - with Category A being the highest.

While Category B prisons don't have the maximum security conditions, they're still highly secured because of concerns that inmates will try to escape.

According to the government website, there are roughly 750 prisoners at Chelmsford in a mixture of single and double cells.

The prison's most recent inspection report, external, covering January to February 2024, highlights some issues at the prison. It mentions "considerable pressures... because of national capacity issues" and notes staff shortages in both reception and the pre-release team.

Following our last post, let's take a look at some government data on prisoners released in error.

The latest figures show that 262 prisoners in England and Wales were mistakenly released in the year leading up to March 2025, according to the prison service's annual digest.

That's a 128% increase compared to the 115 prisoners released in error in the year ending March 2024.

Of the 262 released by mistake, 233 were from prisons and 29 were released in error by courts.

The prison service says in the report that "releases in error remain infrequent", but adds that the rise is linked to "a range of operational and legislative changes".

"Unfortunately, people will be surprised to know that actually this is quite common," says Shabnam Chaudhri, a former detective superintendent with the Metropolitan Police, talking about the accidental release of Hadush Kebatu.

There are "some real complexities" around documents linked to prisoner release, she says. "The mountain of paperwork that ends up being dealt with is quite staggering really."

"This isn't about the individual that they've actually now taken off duties," she continues, referring to the news that a prison officer has been suspended over this incident.

Chaudhri thinks the real problem is "the systems and processes and policies that are just clearly not working very well".

Here's what political figures have said after sex offender Hadush Kebatu was mistakenly released from HMP Chelmsford:

• UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has called the blunder "totally unacceptable"
• Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy says he is "appalled" and "livid on behalf of the public"
• Lib Dem Leader of Chelmsford City Council Stephen Robinson calls the blunder "outrageous"
• Councillor Chris Whitbread, who leads Epping Forest District, says he is "at a loss to understand how such a grave error could occur"
• Neil Hudson, the Conservative MP for Epping Forest, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that people in his constituency are now "deeply distressed"

Lewis Adams
Reporting from Chelmsford

Image source, PA Media

The accidental release of the sex offender was a "mind-blowing" blunder, says the MP for Chelmsford.

The Liberal Democrat MP Marie Goldman says: "My mind has blown. How this could possibly happen?"

The same feeling is shared by Stephen Robinson, the Liberal Democrat leader of Chelmsford City Council.

"This is outrageous," he tells BBC Breakfast.

"Chelmsford prison is used to handling people who are coming and going because it's mainly a remand centre, and so they should be used to dealing with this."

Lewis Adams
Reporting from Chelmsford

Image source, Lewis Adams/BBC

Scores of journalists, including from the BBC, have been in Chelmsford's city centre trying to find out exactly how Hadush Kebatu came to be there yesterday.

Some people on the High Street told me they found it bizarre to see a video of the asylum seeker – whose face was a mainstay on the news for weeks – wandering around.

Kerry Smith, who manages a High Street shop, says it is "scary" to think how close she came to the sex offender.

"We trust the system, so it's quite a shock this person has the ability to walk among us with us not even realising," she says.

Another couple shopping in the city add: "He certainly wasn't hiding. He was holding a bag of belongings and not exactly wearing arrows on his top."

Her partner says: "Clearly someone has made a terrible mistake and I'm sure they're not feeling too good about it today."

Sima Kotecha
Senior UK correspondent

We know a prison officer from HMP Chelmsford has been suspended over this error - but sources tell me this cannot have been down to one person alone.

Several people are involved when an offender is released from custody.

A senior prison staffer says: "This is down to a series of mistakes probably because staff are overworked and in short supply. It’s not just one prison officer who’s to blame. That would be unfair”.

What we know

• Kebatu was mistakenly released from HMP Chelmsford on Friday - weeks after being jailed for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl and a woman in Epping, Essex
• After boarding a London-bound train from Chelmsford, Kebatu eventually got off a service that stopped at Stratford at about 13:10
• Now in charge of the manhunt, Met Police Commander James Conway says finding Kebatu is a "top priority"

What we don't know

• Where Kebatu currently is - though the Met says searches of the London area is its "focus"
• How Kebatu came to be mistakenly released

Thomas Mackintosh
Live reporter

The search for Kebatu began at 12:57 on Friday after Essex Police were informed by the Prison Service that there had been "an error".

By the time the search started, the Greater Anglia London-bound train that Kebatu boarded left Chelmsford at 12:41 and then called at Shenfield, according to trainline data.

The service then stopped at Stratford at around 13:10 where the Met Police say Kebatu got off.

Stratford is the UK's fifth busiest train station, external, with interchanges to the London Underground, London Overground and Dockland's Light Railway (DLR).

Daniel Sandford
UK correspondent

Met officers have been supporting the Essex Police-led operation to locate Kebatu since it was confirmed that he boarded a London-bound train from Chelmsford Station at 12:41hrs on Friday.

Extensive enquiries have been carried out in the hours since and based on those enquiries, there is a high degree of confidence that Kebatu is likely still in the London area.

As a result, responsibility for the manhunt was transferred from Essex Police to the Met shortly after 11:30hrs today.

Here's the full statement from Commander James Conway:

"Finding Hadush Kebatu is a top priority.

"The manhunt is being led by an experienced Senior Investigating Officer. He has teams from the Specialist Crime Command with expertise in tracking down wanted people at his disposal, as well as other resources from across the Met.

"We've confirmed that Kebatu got off the London-bound train at Stratford station.

"We are examining CCTV from that area and further afield, including on the transport network, to establish information about his subsequent movements.

"We will provide further updates when we can, but I hope the press and the public will understand why it would be unhelpful to the effectiveness of the manhunt if we were to provide a detailed running commentary.

"Anyone who sees Kebatu, or has information about his whereabouts, should call 999 immediately."