Prison
TCI prisoners moved to HMP Northward
(CNS) Government officials revealed Thursday that two high security convicted criminals from the Turks and Caicos Islands have been transferred to HMP Northward for a temporary but unspecified period as a result of challenges with TCI’s prison estate. No details have been revealed about the men’s crimes but they were housed in the damaged high […]
Officials step up prison rehab efforts
(CNS): Inmates at HMP Northward are now training to fill some of Cayman’s major skills gaps for technical jobs that are in the highest demand, from air-conditioning repair to carpentry. One of the biggest problems with the criminal justice system is the recidivism of offenders, given the barriers they face finding work when they leave […]
Inmates refuse food at HMP Northward
(CNS): Three prisoners housed in HMP Northward’s best facility have begun refusing food, prison officials have said. It is not clear if this is a hunger strike to draw attention to a specific grievance or just because of the poor standard of food being served. According to a short release from the prison, the men […]
High risk inmate moved to UK
(CNS): Elmer Wright (26), who was recently given a life sentence with a minimum tariff of 21-years in connection with a violent home invasion, was transferred to the UK at the weekend. Wright, who is considered a high risk prisoner, was taken on the British Airways air-bridge on Saturday, which had been arranged to help […]
Prison director quashes rumour of rioting
(CNS): Rumours circulating on social media that prisoners at HMP Northward are rioting are false, Prison Director Steve Barret has stated. HM Cayman Islands Prison Service reported on Monday, 18 May, that two inmates were positive for COVID-19, which Barret said in a statement on Thursday had cause some anxiety among staff and inmates, but […]
Inmates on remand positive for COVID-19
(CNS): Two prisoners at HMP Northward, who were both on remand waiting for trial, have tested positive for coronavirus, HM Cayman Islands Prison Service (HMCIPS) has confirmed. Both men are asymptomatic and are isolated alone, the prison service revealed in a release Tuesday morning. The two inmates have been held in the remand block of […]
Prisoners released to ease jail crowding
(CNS): The prison director has released on licence fourteen local prisoners who were approaching the end of their sentence or deemed to be low risk to reduce prison overcrowding and control the potential spread of the coronavirus at HMP Northward. Another four prisoners from overseas have also been released and deported on the flights to […]
Crammed prison presents virus challenge
(CNS) UPDATED: Given the number of inmates at HMP Northward, the Cayman Islands Prison Service could be facing a challenging time if the corona virus gets a hold at the men’s jail. On Wednesday morning there were a 199 inmates crammed into the overcrowded facility, where social distancing would be all but impossible. However, Prison […]
Prisoners were safe during quake, officials say
(CNS): The Ministry of Home Affairs has said all of its uniform services responded robustly to the 7.7 magnitude earthquake that shook Cayman last week. Although it hasn’t directly refuted claims made by inmates and their families that the women in HMP Fairbanks were locked in and abandoned, officials said that a decision was made […]
Consultants invited to make case for new prison
(CNS): It’s no secret that Cayman’s prison facilities are not only horribly overcrowded but also unfit for human habitation, with conditions that Prison Director Steve Barrett has called “simply unacceptable”. But after many years of neglect, funding has now been secured to begin the redevelopment process of the current estate. An invitation to tender has […]
Northward inmate found dead in cell
(CNS): Durney Ebanks (52) was found dead in his cell at HMP Northward on Wednesday evening, officials from the prison said in a press release Friday. Ebanks was found lying unresponsive on his bed by two prison officers, who administered emergency measures before the medical technicians (EMTs) arrived a few minutes later. He was taken […]
