Daniel Khalife ‘visited shops and McDonald’s’ after alleged prison escape

A former soldier accused of passing secret information to Iran and escaping from prison visited shops and a McDonald’s before he was arrested, a court heard.

Daniel Khalife, 23, is alleged to have escaped from HMP Wandsworth in south London while on remand by strapping himself to the underside of a food delivery lorry on September 6 2023.

Prosecutor Mark Heywood KC told the jury at Woolwich Crown Court on Wednesday that Khalife “quite deliberately escaped” after being escorted to the kitchen where he had a job.

On September 6, Khalife had been to Richmond and went to Mountain Warehouse, the next day he was pictured in an M&S and Sainsbury’s, Mr Heywood said.

He added while referring to images: “You’ll notice by now he’s wearing a face mask and different clothing.”

On the day of the arrest, the defendant was seen in a McDonald’s, he added.

Mr Heywood said: “On the morning of Wednesday 6th September after being escorted from the cell he was then occupying down to the kitchen, when at that time he had a job helping out on Trinity Wing the kitchen duties, he quite deliberately escaped.”

His absence was discovered during a headcount and then all movement in the prison was suspended, the jury was told.

A delivery truck or lorry had come to the rear of the kitchen area, and a truck of the same description was stopped in Upper Richmond Road at about 8.40am, Mr Heywood said.

The driver explained he had been contacted by his head office, had searched his truck twice and could not find anybody inside or underneath it, and police found nothing but pallets and a trolley, the court heard.

Officers found a “makeshift sling” which could “support an individual”, he added.

The truck driver was shown a photograph of the missing man who he recognised immediately “as the person who was due to be there to help him but he didn’t show up”, the jury was told.

“He clearly did show up but didn’t reveal himself,” Mr Heywood said.

Khalife was arrested on a canal towpath in west London on September 9 2023 with a number of items including a mountain bike, a Waitrose bag with a phone, receipts a diary and about £200 in notes, the jury was told.

After his arrest, Khalife said “I don’t know how immigrants do it”, and was examined and found with scratches to his lower legs, the prosecution said.

Khalife also faces a charge of gathering, publishing or communicating information that might be useful to an enemy, namely Iranian intelligence, contrary to the Official Secrets Act between May 1 2019 and January 6 2022.

In addition, he is accused of perpetrating a bomb hoax in Beaconside, Staffordshire, on or before January 2023.

The fourth charge alleges Khalife elicited or attempted to elicit personal information about armed forces personnel that was likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism from a Ministry of Defence administration system on August 2 2021.

He denies all of the charges.

The trial continues.