A man has been accused of groping a woman within 15 minutes of being freed under Labour’s early release scheme.
Amari Ward is accused of sexually assaulting the woman as she gave him a lift to Sittingbourne railway station in Kent.
Jurors at Maidstone Crown Court heard how the 31-year-old was being driven off by the victim from HMP Swaleside last September.
When she told him: “I bet you’re glad to be out", the court heard Ward replied by saying he needed oral sex, which the woman ignored, thinking he meant with his partner, reports The Sun.
Ward appeared at Maidstone Crown Court (file pic)
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She told Maidstone Crown Court: "He asked if I’d ever filmed myself doing a porno. I told him absolutely not and I find it inappropriate.
"He asked me if I’d like to make a porn movie with him. I felt very uncomfortable."
Jurors heard how the 31-year-old touched her twice near her groin and asked for a kiss as they arrived at the station.
The woman said: "I told him to f*** off, pushed his hand away and went to punch him. I believe I connected with his chin."
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The incident happened as she was driving Ward to Sittingbourne Railway Station
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Ward, of South London, denies sexual assault. The trial continues.
It comes as a report has warned urgent reform is needed to avoid another prison overcrowding crisis as rising numbers of people being recalled to prison is "trapping" them in the criminal justice system.
The Prison Reform Trust found 32,404 were people recalled into custody in the year to September 2024, a rise of 27 per cent on the previous year, with the jump particularly affecting those serving prison sentences of less than 12 months.
Some 15,211 criminals with under one-year sentences were recalled in the year to September 2024, showing a hike of 51 per cent on the previous year, the charity added.
He had been released from HMP Swaleside
PAMeanwhile, a snapshot figure at the end of December 2024 showed a record high of nearly one in five of the sentenced prison population now being held on recall, 12,920 people, which is expected to rise by around 13 per cent to 13,650 by 2026 according to Ministry of Justice projections.
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: "Keeping the public safe is our number one priority, which is why we do not hesitate to send offenders back to prison if they break the rules of their release.
“We’ve already taken difficult but necessary immediate action to stop our prisons from collapsing. We are now implementing the long-term measures to fix our prisons, reduce reoffending and cut crime."
