London: An Indian-origin convict ran a thriving brothel that netted him thousands of pounds, as the prison staff failed to verify where he spent his time during the day when he was out of jail.
Rashpal Singh, serving a six-year term for aggravated burglary, had served less than two years when he was granted day release from 5.30 am to 9 pm to work as part of a reintegration programme.
Prison staff who thought Singh was working as a tyre fitter are understood to have failed to check on where he was spending his time, tabloid The Express reported today. Not a single phone call was made to the company where he said he was employed to find if his claims were genuine.
According to The Express, Singh was only caught after a member of the public saw girls congregating at his home with men and tipped off the police. When officers raided the house they found 2,000 pounds cash in Singh's pocket and a large amount of cannabis, a court heard.
Officials at Moorland Open Prison in Doncaster, South Yorks, believed he was working eight and a half hours, six days a week and spending the rest of the time travelling on public transport to and from the job 35 km away in Rotherham.
But Sheffield Crown Court was told that instead he was using his days to recruit Eastern European vice girls and running the brothel at his Rotherham home.
On Thursday he was jailed for a further two years on top of his existing sentence after pleading guilty to keeping a brothel.
The Recorder of Sheffield, Judge Alan Goldsack QC told him: "I suspect the public will be surprised you were allowed out so early in a lengthy sentence. The fact that so few checks, if any, were made that you were actually attending the place where you were supposed to be working will add to the concern."
A Prison Service spokesman said: "We don't comment on individual prisoners. Risk assessments are carried out in accordance with normal procedures, including visits by staff to observe prisoners at work."
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