Escaped prisoner released by mistake sparking UK manhunt is back behind bars

Escaped Prisoner Returns Voluntarily After Erroneous Release

William Smith, 35, known as Billy, surrendered himself three days after mistakenly being released by staff at HMP Wandsworth. Before being taken back inside, he was seen smoking a cigarette.

Incident Details

Smith, a convicted fraudster, walked into the Victorian prison wearing a blue Nike tracksuit shortly after 10:30 a.m., arriving in a flatbed truck. Earlier that week, police had launched a significant manhunt following his accidental release just hours after he was sentenced to 45 months for multiple fraud offenses.

He had attended a hearing at Croydon Crown Court via live video link from prison but was mistakenly freed afterward.

Return and Surrender

Photographs captured Smith accompanied by prison officers after he handed himself in. Prior to surrendering, he was seen embracing a crying woman inside the van that brought him back.

“I’m the prisoner they’re looking for. I’m about to hand myself in.”

Once inside, Smith identified himself, had a cigarette outside while two male officers stood nearby, and appeared to argue briefly with one of them before being escorted back into the prison.

An eyewitness commented:

“It looked like there was some confusion at first about who he was and what he was there for.”

Background Information

Despite the confusion, Smith showed willingness to return and face custody again.

Author's summary: William Smith, mistakenly released after sentencing, voluntarily returned to HMP Wandsworth three days later, ending a police search sparked by the error.

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The Mirror The Mirror — 2025-11-06

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