Inmate stabbed in prison 'power balance' attack

An inmate was stabbed in a prison gang attack involving a shiv, tin in a sock and pool balls, a court has heard.

The victim and his cellmate were set upon by a large group in HMP Northumberland in November 2022, Newcastle Crown Court heard.

The five minute-long attack was part of a "power balance" struggle amid allegations of bullying, the court was told.

Four of those involved have been sentenced after admitting violent disorder.

A group of inmates stormed the cell of the victim and another man on 20 November 2022, prosecutor Daniel Ingham said.

What actually happened in the cell is unknown as there were no CCTV cameras and the victims had made no statements, the court heard, but it is understood both men were attacked as prison officers ran to the scene.

The victim managed to get out into the corridor, throwing pool balls at his attackers to make them back off before he was tackled to the ground and set upon, the court heard.

The incident ended after the man managed to break free and hurl more pool balls at his attackers, the court heard.

The victim received multiple stab wounds to his back and a cut above his eye, Mr Ingham said, but it was not known who inflicted the injuries.

A shiv, which the court heard was prison slang for a "handmade sharp-bladed article", was found in the victim's toilets but no forensic evidence could be retrieved from it.

Daniel Harrington, 32, Michael Pedersen, 33, Ryan O'Connor, 34 and Carl Burton, 23, all admitted being involved.

Burton was seen holding an item in a sock, later said to be a tin, on the prison cameras, the court heard.

Harrington, of Hollington Close in Newcastle, also admitted wounding a man outside a pub in North Shields, North Tyneside, on 19 April.

The court heard he repeatedly punched the victim and posted a gloating video of himself throttling the blood-covered victim on social media.

He was in HMP Northumberland in 2022 having been jailed for 10 years in 2015 for breaking into a man's house and stabbing him in the stomach, the court heard.

Burton, who is still a serving prisoner, was doing a 20-week jail term for assaulting an emergency worker and racially aggravated harassment, while O'Connor had been jailed for 16 years in 2021 for drug offences, the court heard.

Pedersen, of Manners Gardens in Seaton Delaval, Northumberland, was on prison recall at the time having been jailed for 30 months for assaulting an emergency worker, assault and criminal damage in 2020.

In mitigation, lawyers for the men said there had been a spate of bullying incidents carried out by the victim and his associates.

Dan Wilberforce, representing Burton, said the attack was "essentially a backlash" to "redress the power balance" on the wing.

Rachel Hedworth, for O'Connor, said he was surprised to be prosecuted for the attack, having believed he had already been punished by being put in segregation for 28 days and had various privileges revoked.

Judge Edward Bindloss said it was a "frightening" incident for other prisoners and officers to have to deal with.

Burton and O'Connor were both jailed for 23 months to run alongside their existing serving sentences.

Pedersen was jailed for the same period, which was suspended for two years and he must carry out 200 hours' unpaid work.

Harrington, who the judge said posed a "high risk" to others, was jailed for a total of four years and eight months.

Four other men will be sentenced on future dates for their involvement.

Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.