The government is reviewing the benefits entitlements of convicted criminals following the case of triple killer Valdo Calocane, who could receive welfare payments while detained in a high-security hospital.
Calocane, 32, fatally stabbed Barnaby Webber and Grace O'Malley-Kumar, both 19, and 65-year-old Ian Coates in Nottingham on 13 June. He was sentenced under section 37 of the Mental Health Act, which allows for hospital detention rather than prison and does not automatically bar inmates from receiving benefits.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is examining the specifics of Calocane's case and the broader rules around benefit entitlements for those detained under section 37. The prime minister's official spokesman confirmed that the Work and Pensions Secretary is looking into the matter.
Emma Webber, mother of victim Barnaby, told The Telegraph that news of Calocane's potential benefit entitlement was 'truly devastating' and added to the 'grief and sense of injustice' felt by the families.
The Attorney General is also reviewing the sentence handed down by Mr Justice Turner on 25 January, which detained Calocane indefinitely for medical treatment due to paranoid schizophrenia. Separate inquiries are examining the Crown Prosecution Service's decision to accept manslaughter pleas and how the victims' families were consulted.
