Yahoo News Stoke-on-Trent prisoner, 38, found dead by cellmate hours before being released
A Stoke-on-Trent inmate was found dead in his cell just hours before he was due to be released from prison. Nicholas Whitehead, formerly of Meir, died after taking a lethal mix of hard drugs.
The 38-year-old was serving a jail sentence at HMP Sudbury - on the Staffordshire-Derbyshire border - when he ingested multiple substances, including heroin, cocaine and two psychoactive stimulants. He was discovered by his cellmate 'slumped over on his side' on January 23, 2020.
Now Prisons and Probation Ombudsman Adrian Usher has expressed his concerns about how the father-of-three - who had been sentenced to five years behind bars for burglary, theft and fraud - was able to get hold of illicit drugs and the fact his use of them had gone undetected by the prison. He has recommended that the governor of HMP Sudbury ensures 'staff are vigilant for signs of substance misuse' and the drug strategy is being implemented effectively in order 'to reduce the levels of illicit substances entering the prison and reduce the demand for them'.
READ MORE: Investigation after Stoke-on-Trent dad, 38, dies in prison Nicholas Whitehead had taken a cocktail of drugs
READ MORE: These two burglars broke into Stoke-on-Trent house on their street where FIVE children were asleep Nicholas Whitehead and Andrew Wrighton have now been jailed for the Meir break-in
Mr Usher concluded: "I am concerned that Mr Whitehead was able to access illicit drugs at Sudbury and that the prison missed that he was taking drugs. Although I recognise the progress that Sudbury has made in reducing the level of illicit substances entering the prison, it needs to continue in its efforts to reduce the supply of and demand for illicit substances and staff need to remain vigilant for signs that prisoners are using drugs."
The report reveals that in the lead up to his death, Whitehead had undergone a second MRI scan which confirmed that he had an aneurysm. On January 3, 2020 he was taken to hospital because he had a gluteal abscess which had burst.
The following day he underwent surgery to incise and drain his abscess before returning to Sudbury 24 hours later. The report states that Whitehead was prescribed codeine for pain relief following the procedure and "there was no indication in the health records that he was taking or suspected of taking any illicit substances".
Prior to his death, a prison GP had last seen Whitehead on January 9, 2020 and referred him urgently to a neurosurgeon although an appointment was not received before he passed away.
The report states: "Mr Whitehead’s cellmate said in his prison statement that on 22 January, Mr Whitehead had had a haircut as he was going to be released on temporary licence the following day. He said that in the evening, they talked about Mr Whitehead’s release and went to bed at around 11pm that night.
"Two officers completed roll checks that night but noted nothing unusual or untoward about Mr Whitehead or his cellmate. An officer said that if she noticed anything unusual, she would have noted it in the wing observation book which she did not. There was no CCTV footage available.
"Mr Whitehead’s cellmate said in his statement that at about midnight during the roll check, Mr Whitehead was asleep on his back, snoring. At around 8.20am on 23 January, Mr Whitehead’s cellmate tried to wake him as he was due for release on temporary licence.
"In his statement, he said that Mr Whitehead was slumped over on his side. He ran to the wing office to alert prison staff who attended straightaway and called a medical emergency. At 8.32am, healthcare staff responded with emergency equipment and a defibrillator. Officers and healthcare staff tried to resuscitate Mr Whitehead. Three crews of paramedics arrived between 8.47am and 9.05am. At 9.08am, paramedics pronounced that Mr Whitehead had died.
"At approximately 9.55am, the family liaison officer and an officer left the prison to visit Mr Whitehead’s mother. On their way, they met Mr Whitehead’s brother who had come to the prison to meet him for his day release. The officers took him into a private room and broke the news of Mr Whitehead’s death.
"He was concerned about how his mother would take the news, and how it would affect her health. They visited her together and broke the news to her. They offered their condolences and support."
The report adds: "We are concerned that Mr Whitehead was able to access cocaine, heroin and psychoactive stimulants at Sudbury, and that the prison missed that he was using drugs. There was no intelligence or reported instances that he misused drugs at Sudbury before 23 January, 2020 and there was no indication in his medical records that he was taking or was suspected of taking any illicit substances.
"A cell search was conducted shortly after he died and no illicit substances were found. In the absence of evidence, we cannot say whether or not he misused drugs regularly in prison. Although we recognise that Sudbury has a sound drugs strategy in place, and improvements have been made, Mr Whitehead apparently had no difficulty in obtaining and using drugs without staff becoming aware.
"While we consider that Sudbury has taken positive steps to address the drugs problem and we decided not to make a recommendation in our previous investigation into a drug-related death at the prison because of this, we are concerned that this is now the second death we have seen within an 18-month period, where we have raised concerns about prisoners having access to illicit substances."
StokeonTrentLive has approached HMP Sudbury for a statement following the ombudsman report.
A Prison Service spokesperson said responded to StokeonTrentLive's request for comment from HMP Sudbury.
It said: “Our thoughts remain with the family of Mr Whitehead. HMP Sudbury has made significant improvements since this incident, including ramping up drug testing and hiring specialist staff to stop illicit drugs from entering the prison.”
