Muslim gangs have taken control of one of Britain's most drug-ridden and violent prisons, watchdogs warn
By RORY TINGLE, HOME AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT
Published: 07:21 EST, 18 December 2025 | Updated: 14:38 EST, 18 December 2025
Muslim gangs hold sway at one of the most violent and drug-ridden prisons in Britain, watchdogs have warned.
Chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor has served an urgent notification for HMP Swaleside in Kent after discovering dangerously unsafe conditions for prisoners and staff in an unannounced visit earlier this month.
Mr Taylor said the prison was 'filthy', rife with drugs and had a 'pervasive sense of despair', leading him to give it the 'worst scores of any jail in my five years as chief inspector'.
The jail's Independent Monitoring Board previously raised concerns about 'religious gangs' at the facility, where a third of inmates are Muslim.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15395691/Muslim-gangs-taken-control-one-Britain-drug-ridden-violent-prisons-watchdogs-warn.html
