Fugitive Daniel Khalife ‘is either extremely lucky or very smart’ after ‘Cape Fear’ escape

Fugitive terror suspect Daniel Khalife ‘is either extremely lucky or very smart’, a former British Army officer with security expertise has said.

Dr Patrick Bury believes that the escapee, a former soldier, is likely to have had help in breaking out of Wandsworth jail strapped to the underside of a food delivery van and remaining on the run for three days.

A nationwide manhunt is currently underway for the 21-year-old with searches of Richmond Park in south-west London overnight.

The spotlight is also falling on how Khalife, who is accused of trying to spy for an enemy state, thought to be Iran, was able to escape the Category B prison hidden underneath the Bidfood van.

Dr Bury, a former air assault infantry Captain, said: ‘Daniel Khalife is either extremely lucky or very smart, and if it’s the latter it’s likely he’s had a lot of help. He has managed to escape from Wandsworth prison by attaching himself to the bottom of a vehicle like the character in Cape Fear.

‘This is a smart move because he would have known that none of the CCTV cameras on the route would pick him up and he must have clocked that they would not search under the vehicle.

‘Despite the huge scale of the manhunt, which includes searching Richmond Park, he hasn’t been seen since, which again would show his awareness of London’s CCTV, and the use of police helicopters with thermal systems used at night. As a former Army member he might know to do basic things to hide, while changing his appearance and getting out of his chef’s uniform would just be common sense.’

Khalife was based at MoD Stafford where he is thought to have been a Royal Signals Corps soldier and to have worked as a computer engineer.

He is said to have joined the Army in 2018 before being discharged in May, four months after being charged with terror offences following an investigation by the Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Command. The base, also known as Beacon Barracks, is home to the Royal Corps of Signals 1st Signal Brigade, the Defence Electronics Agency, the RAF Joint Helicopter Command’s Tactical Supply Wing and No 22 Group Air Force cadets.

Dr Bury, a security and defence specialist at the University of Bath, said: ‘He may be more at home in the wilderness or in a place like Richmond Park, but I wouldn’t read too much into his military background, as we haven’t been told which unit he was in.

‘If he is a Signals soldier, which hasn’t been confirmed, as we only know he was at their base in Stafford, then he will have been selected on the basis that he is bright and resourceful.

‘My gut instinct is that, rather than acting on a whim, he has been very smart and has probably had some help.

‘Imagine if the escape is unplanned; how do you know where the van is going to stop and what CCTV will be in the area? How would you even know where you are? It’s quite an exceptional escape, so he’s either incredibly lucky, or there is more to it.’

There have been no publicly disclosed sightings of Khalife since his escape on the morning of Wednesday, September 6, while he was dressed in a cook’s uniform through his job in the jail’s kitchen.

More than 1,000 police officers and staff are now involved in the manhunt, with increased security at ports and borders.

The intensive search has focused on London and the Kingston area, where Khalife is known to have connections.

Dr Bury highlighted Khalife’s possible accomplices in the audacious escape as a crucial piece of the puzzle.

‘His next moves will depend on what his objectives are,’ Dr Bury said.

‘His family and friends are likely to be being watched very carefully.

‘They’ll know they could have up to 14 years in prison hanging over them if they assist him, if he ends up being convicted of being a terrorist.

‘However my feeling is that he isn’t acting alone.

‘He is said to have had a relationship with Iran, so that is one angle, but we don’t know the nature of any contact he may have had. We can maybe read into the fact that by placing him in Wandsworth, a Category B prison, they thought the nature of the relationship was pretty low.

‘Maybe they were right, maybe they were wrong, maybe it’s a mess-up.

‘It’s a case of wait and see.’

Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism Command, referred to Khalife’s military background when he spoke to reporters yesterday.

Cdr Murphy said: ‘This was a really busy area of London and we’ve had no confirmed sightings in any of that information, which is a little unusual and perhaps testament to Daniel Khalife’s ingenuity in his escape and some of his movements after his escape.

‘It’s important that we remember that we have some of the best military in the world here in the UK, and he was trained.

‘He was a trained soldier – so ultimately he has skills that perhaps some sections of the public don’t have.’

The police are looking at ‘everything’, including whether Khalife was assisted by prison guards, other inmates or people on ‘outside the walls’, Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley told LBC today.

Khalife had been facing charges including leaving fake bombs at a military base and stealing personal information about soldiers from the Ministry of Defence’s administration system ‘likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism’.

He also faced an allegation that he had breached the Official Secrets Act by acting against the ‘safety and interests of the state’.

Rishi Sunak told reporters this afternoon that the police are working ‘day and night’ to bring in Khalife.

Speaking from the G20 summit in New Delhi, the prime minister said: ‘I know people will be anxious about it but police are working very hard to recapture the individual concerned and the justice secretary has initiated an internal inquiry into the circumstances around his escape.’

MORE : Police probe whether fugitive ‘Iranian spy’ escape was ‘inside job’ as search turns to park near where family lived

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