Terror police investigating assault on prison guards at HMP Whitemoor

9 January 2020, 19:55

Five prison officers at a high security prison in Cambridgeshire have been taken to hospital after being assaulted.

Police said the attack happened on Thursday morning at HMP Whitemoor in Cambridgeshire, as cells were unlocked.

The Met Police said its counter-terrorism command unit had been called in to investigate "due to certain circumstances relating to this incident".

A spokesman said it was "deemed appropriate" for counter-terrorism officers to respond, although they have not elaborated why.

"However, we must stress that at this early stage of the investigation we are keeping an open mind with regards to any motives and enquiries to establish the full circumstances of the incident are ongoing," they added.

A prison service spokesman said: "The incident was quickly resolved by our brave staff and our thoughts are with the injured officers at this time.

"We do not tolerate assaults on our hardworking officers and will push for the strongest possible punishment."

It is unclear what the nature of the injuries to the five officers was.

The 458-capacity HMP Whitemoor in Cambridgeshire is a maximum security prison for some of Britain's most dangerous men, serving sentences over four years.

It's one of eight high security prisons in the UK housing Category A prisoners that would pose a "significant risk" to the public.

The prison has a Dangerous Severe Personality Disorder (DSPD) unit and a Close Supervision Centre (CSC).

Whitemoor does not accept any prisoners who are serving less than 4 years.