The final texts of a man who died alone in his prison cell while begging for help have been shared after prison and health bosses admitted failings in his care. Calum Inglis, 34, was found dead at HMP Addiewell on October 24 2021, 12 days after contracting coronavirus.
Five years on from the tragedy, his family watched NHS Lothian and prison management firm Sodexo admit failing to manage his care before his death at Edinburgh Sheriff Court.
Messages show suffering in final days
A series of texts sent to his parents in the days leading up to the tragedy have laid bare the pain of his final hours. On October 16 2021, four days after becoming ill, Calum texted his mum: “This is torture…...this is the worst feeling ever I can’t handle much more.”
On October 17, he told his mum he was coughing up blood. On October 18, he texted: “I can’t walk five steps in my cell without losing my breath.” His mother, Jen, told him he should see a nurse or doctor, but nobody came.
On October 19, he added: “My neck is all purple too from the swelling.” That same day, he texted his father Alan, who told him he needed to go to hospital. Calum replied: “I’ve been telling them and asking them that all week, Dad.”
Family speaks of lasting grief
On October 22, Calum sent a final text to his father saying he was feeling “bloody awful” and it was the “worst two weeks of his life.” His final text to his mother was sent on October 23, reading: “I'm completely burning up its scary.”
Jen said she will never forget the day she received Calum’s post-mortem results. She said: “Opening those documents and reading what had happened inside my son’s body was horrific. Multiple blood clots, sepsis, bacterial infections. I cannot begin to describe what it feels like as a mother to read those words and know how much Calum would have suffered and how absolutely alone he must have felt. It is something that will haunt me for the rest of my life.”
Alan said he has struggled with feelings of guilt since Calum died. He added: “I had been aware that my son was unwell, and yet, because I trusted the system, the regret has become unbearable. As a dad, I feel I should have been knocking down the doors of the prison asking them to help my son - but I didn’t. I believed that he would be looked after.”
“My lasting thought will always be that Calum died completely alone in his cell, while clearly needing medical attention. It is just heartbreaking to think of what he went through in his final hours. His time in prison was never meant to be a death sentence.”
