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Rapist 'was right' for open jail Rapist 'met open jail criteria'
(about 3 hours later)
The rape of a schoolgirl by a man who absconded from an open jail "could not have been predicted", the Scottish Prison Service has said. The rape of a schoolgirl by a man who absconded from an open jail could not have been predicted, Scottish prison bosses have insisted.
A report into the case of Robert Foye, 28, said he had met the criteria to be transferred to Castle Huntly. Robert Foye, 28, admitted raping the 16-year-old in Cumbernauld in August last year after absconding from Castle Huntly, near Dundee.
It said it could not have been predicted that Foye, who had a history of property-related crime, would go on to commit a sexual offence. But a Scottish Prison Service review of the case said Foye met the criteria to be transferred there.
But it added that lessons had been learned from the incident. Ministers have been urged to make a statement to parliament on the issue.
Foye was half way through a 10-year sentence for attempting to murder a policeman in 2002 when he was allowed out of Castle Huntley, near Dundee, to attend an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. He did not return. Foye was half way through a 10-year sentence for attempting to murder a policeman in 2002 when he absconded after being allowed out of Castle Huntly to attend an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting.
He had been on the run for about a week when he carried out the attack on the 16-year-old girl on 24 August on a path near Dowanfield Road, Cumbernauld. This is an astonishing report, one which should cause the Scottish Prison Service to hang its head in shame Bill AitkenTory justice spokesman
'Very high risk' The prisoner, who also absconded from the jail in 2005, had been on the run for about a week when he raped the girl on a path.
It emerged that Foye had also absconded from the jail in 2005. The government-ordered review of the case found Foye posed a "high-risk of re-offending" and absconding was a possibility, but fitted the criteria for transfer to an open prison.
In January, Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill announced that an urgent review would be carried out to see what lessons could be learned. But the investigation pointed out Foye mostly had a criminal history of dishonesty and car crime, not sexual offences.
Mike Ewart, SPS chief executive, said it could not have been predicted that Foye would go on to commit a sexual offence. Scottish Prison Service chief executive Mike Ewart said lessons would be learned from the review, which made a series of recommendations on improving the system.
He said: "Whilst the conclusions indicate that the particular offence he was convicted of could not have been predicted, there are points of learning to be gleamed from this exercise. "While the conclusions indicate the particular offence [Foye] was convicted of could not have been predicted, there are points of learning to be gleamed from this exercise and we will make sure these are implemented," he said.
"We will make sure that these are implemented and that we continue to improve, as far as possible, the systems we have for screening prisoners being transferred to the open estate and continuing to face risks that they present as effectively as we can." READ THE REPORT class="" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/18_03_08_foye.pdf">Review of the circumstances surrounding the transfer of Robert Foye to Castle Huntly [28KB] Most computers will open this document automatically, but you may need Adobe Reader href="http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html">Download the reader here Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said the recommendations were being introduced "as a matter of urgency", but pointed out it was never possible to eliminate risk.
Foye admitted the rape charge at the High Court in Edinburgh last month and is due to be sentenced on 6 May. "Nothing can make up for the victim's horrendous ordeal in this disturbing case," he added.
The judge said she was considering a life-long restriction order. Scottish Tory justice spokesman Bill Aitken urged Mr MacAskill to make an emergency statement in the Scottish Parliament on the "inadequacies" of the Scottish Prison Service.
Lady Smith told the court that Foye had been assessed as posing "a very high risk of further violent offending". "This is an astonishing report, one which should cause the Scottish Prison Service to hang its head in shame," he said.
"The contradictions and assessments made in the report are truly alarming."
Foye absconded from Castle Huntly before committing the rape
Pauline McNeill, Labour's justice spokeswoman, added: "Robert Foye is a convicted violent drug user with a record of absconding and still the prison authorities decided it was appropriate for him to go to Castle Huntly.
"How the same prison authorities can now claim the open estate was a suitable place for him is absolutely beyond explanation."
The review recommended seven changes in prisoner transfer to open prisons, including better risk assessment for absconding and improved training for prison staff.
Foye, who admitted the rape charge at the High Court in Glasgow last month, is to be sentenced in May.
Meanwhile the Scottish Government's prisons commission, which is considering the role of open prisons, will report in June.