Adeel Khan, 32, from Waltham Forest, east London, has been jailed for four-and-a-half years for assisting ex-soldier Daniel Khalife, who escaped from HMP Wandsworth on the underside of a food delivery truck in 2023. Khan, who worked with Khalife in the prison kitchen, was convicted after trial in July and sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court on Friday.
Role in the escape aftermath
Khan helped his former fellow inmate by organising a way to get £400 in cash to him after the escape. He asked Imran Chowdhury, 26, of Chingford, east London, to withdraw the money and arranged for him to be paid £120 for the job, the court heard. Chowdhury was cleared of the same charge of assisting Khalife after trial.
After his escape, Khalife called Khan multiple times using the phones of members of the public in a pattern of regular contact. Khan messaged his then-girlfriend to pay Chowdhury, who “didn’t know what was going on,” for attending the meeting with Khalife.
Prosecution and sentencing remarks
Tom Williams, prosecuting, said: “Mr Khan’s assistance via Mr Chowdhury allowed Mr Khalife to buy the phone he used to contact his IRGC [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp] handlers.” He added that Khan’s help meant Khalife was able “to survive on the outside for longer than he would otherwise have been able to” and that he used some of the money to buy non-prison clothes.
A red diary found in Khalife’s possession when he was caught contained Khan’s name, phone numbers and contact details for his relations, the court heard. Khalife was also found with about £200 in cash, thought to be part of the withdrawal Chowdhury had made.
In sentencing, Judge Murray Shanks said: “These offences arose out of the escape from Wandsworth prison of Daniel Khalife on September 6 2023, at the time you were also in Wandsworth prison.” He noted that while Khan was not charged with assisting the escape itself, he was “quite sure” there had been some discussion about Khalife’s plan. “That was why he had your number and your brother’s details I think when he escaped in that little book,” said Judge Shanks.
Khan's background and sentence
At the time of the escape, Khan was on remand at HMP Wandsworth, facing extradition to France after being convicted in absence of playing a leading role in a human trafficking operation along with firearms offences. Mr Williams called him the “leader” of a network organising trips for migrants from eastern Europe to France and then on to the UK via the channel.
Khan was stopped while driving a van through France in 2021, and three boats with engines and life jackets were found in the back, the court heard. Gregory Fishwick, defending, told the judge that Khan looks after his family, many of whom were in court on Friday morning. In July, Mr Fishwick said Khan had “made decisions as a young man which he is now living to regret” including during his time in prison.
Khan, of east London, was sentenced to four-and-a-half years’ imprisonment for assisting an escaped prisoner and 15 months concurrently for possession of an illegal prison phone. Khalife was sentenced to 14 years and three months in prison after being convicted of breaching the Official Secrets and Terrorism Acts at a trial in 2024.
