HMP Humber drug death fall in prison was accidental, says ombudsman

HMP Humber must continue to reduce supply and demand of drugs and look after prisoners affected by drug use, the report said

A prisoner high on drugs fell to his death from safety netting in an East Yorkshire jail wing, an investigation has found.

Anthony Clark tumbled 12ft (3.6m) at HMP Humber, near Brough, in February 2019.

Tests showed the 33-year-old had taken psychoactive drugs, a report by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman said.

His death was an accident but "another example of the harmful effects" of such substances, it added.

Ombudsman Sue McAllister's report said Clark "had a history of substance misuse in prison and in the community" and got into debt because of it.

He had previously climbed on to the prison's safety netting hoping to be moved away from his debtors, Ms McAllister said

On 21 February 2019, Clark was behaving erratically and his speech was slurred.

Instead of returning to his cell when directed by a prison officer, he instead climbed onto the netting on M wing.

The officer and prisoners asked why he was on there, but Clark, who was serving 15 months for burglary, did not answer and walked off the end of the net.

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He was treated at the scene before being transferred to hospital Hull but never regained consciousness and died on 27 February.

The ombudsman's report also identified bullying as a particular problem on Clark's wing and said it had "prompted behaviours that ultimately led to his death".

Clark was the third drug-related death of a prisoner at HMP Humber since January 2018 and the second after an accidental fall from height, the report found.

HM Prison and Probation Service had issued a revised prison drugs strategy in September 2019 which aimed to give clear direction on how the prison should tackle substance misuse.

Ms McAllister said in the light of the revised strategy her report would make no recommendations.