Working from inside the prison he helped former soldier Khalife escape
A man has been found guilty of assisting former soldier Daniel Khalife, who escaped from HMP Wandsworth by tying himself to the underside of a food delivery truck.
Adeel Khan, 32, from Waltham Forest, east London, helped Khalife, who was sentenced for spying for Iran after a 2024 trial, after his escape in September 2023. A second man, Imran Chowdhury, 26, of Chingford, east London, was cleared of the same charge.
Khan, who worked with Khalife in the prison kitchen, helped the escaped prisoner from inside jail, Snaresbrook Crown Court previously heard.
He asked Chowdhury to withdraw £400 for Khalife after his escape and arranged for him to be paid £120 for the job, jurors were told.
A jury deliberated for four hours and 36 minutes before finding Khan guilty by a majority of 11 to one on Tuesday.
A red 2023 diary was found in Khalife’s possession when he was arrested, the court heard. Inside he had written Khan’s name, illegal prison phone number, personal mobile number, and his Snapchat account, according to photos shown to the court.
Khalife also had about £200 in £20 notes, which the prosecution said was part of a £400 withdrawal made by Chowdhury at a Richmond ATM on the evening of the escape.
After his escape, Khalife called Khan multiple times using the phones of members of the public in a pattern of “regular and persistent” contact, the court heard.
At 8.41pm, Khan messaged his then-girlfriend Nazish Mahmood with Chowdhury’s bank details, adding: “Put 120£ in this ac… please thank u baby”.
The £120 arrived in Chowdhury’s Barclays account at 8.55pm, the prosecution said.
In a meeting that Khan had been “instrumental” in arranging, CCTV footage played to the jury showed Chowdhury and Khalife walking along George Street, Richmond, at 10.38pm before entering an alleyway.
The back street had a cashpoint out of CCTV view, and the prosecution said Chowdhury withdrew £400 from it.
Chowdhury’s defence barrister, James Hasslacher, told jurors the defendant had not known he was dealing with an escaped prisoner, describing Khalife as a spy who “knows how to deceive”.
He said Chowdhury was of “good character”, with no previous convictions and a good salary at The Telegraph.
Judge Murray Shanks said the jury’s findings suggested Chowdhury “didn’t know what the hell was going on”, adding it seemed a “reasonable verdict, I have to admit”.
Khan was remanded into custody to be sentenced at the same court on September 4.
