Terrorist moved to NHS unit with board games and film nights

Telegraph

02-06-2025

A teenage terrorist who has stabbed 10 prison officers while in custody has been transferred to an NHS mental health unit that offers sports, games and film nights.
Nathan Ruth, 18, has been held at Feltham Young Offenders Institute, in west London, since he was jailed for seven years last year after being convicted of plotting an attack at the Isle of Wight Festival. The then 15-year-old had researched weapons, vehicles and stab vests.
Prison sources at Feltham have warned that staff at Ruth's new NHS mental health unit are not safe from the Muslim convert extremist, who tried to slice one guard's ear off and stabbed another with a makeshift weapon known as a shank.
An intelligence report on Ruth, leaked to the Daily Mail, revealed that he has a history of improvising weapons and attacking staff and intends to kill a prison officer.
Between his arrest in July 2022 and sentencing last April, Ruth, who was caught following a tip-off from the FBI, had already attacked prison personnel on 18 occasions.
However, he will now be able to take advantage of sports facilities, quizzes, arts and crafts and film nights after being moved to Bluebird House, a secure mental health facility in Hampshire.
'He has 100 per cent manipulated the system'
The centre's website states that staff provide 'a friendly, welcoming and therapeutic environment for our young people'.
The unit's three wards care for up to 20 young people and include a relaxation room, sports hall, games room, fitness suite and all-weather sports area. Patients are provided with their own 'homely and comfortable' bedroom with an en-suite.
Its website said: 'During evenings and weekends, we plan activities such as sports, board games, quizzes, arts and crafts and film nights.'
According to the Mail, guards at Feltham have worn full riot gear when they deliver food to Ruth or allow him out to shower or exercise.
Prison officers said they were shocked at his move. 'He has stabbed so many officers while in Feltham, and openly boasts to staff that we will see him on the news one day,' a source told the Mail.
'We can't believe they have let him go. He has 100 per cent manipulated the system to get himself sent somewhere more comfortable. What really annoys staff is that he has received no further prison time for all the stabbings against staff.
'They just want to focus on his rehabilitation. Well, tell that to the officer who nearly lost an ear. He is a stone-cold psychopath, the scariest I have ever seen. He will not stop until he has killed someone. Staff at that place do not know what they are letting themselves in for.'
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: 'Prisoners can be transferred for treatment in mental health hospitals, based on assessments by expert clinicians, but will return to prison once they are fit to do so. We do not tolerate violence against our hard-working staff and will always push for the strongest possible punishments for those who break the rules.'