Prisoner sues prison for PTSD
Former prisoner sues Ministry of Justice over PTSD from rats
A man is suing the prison service after he developed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from rats running across his body and bed while he was locked in his cell, the Guardian has learned.
The 71-year-old was serving a short sentence at Wormwood Scrubs prison in west London after being convicted of a benefits offence which he insists he did not commit.
As a result of the rodents’ constant presence, he began to have vivid and terrifying nightmares, was diagnosed with depression and developed a skin rash and symptoms of PTSD.
The case has come to light the week after a damning report into HMP Bedford found that the rat problem there was so bad that one prisoner was witnessed catching and killing rats in his cell during the inspection.
The report, published on Tuesday, found that pest control work had failed to eradicate a significant infestation of the rodents at HMP Bedford.
When the pensioner at Wormwood Scrubs began to serve his time, one prison officer described the place as a “rathole” to him, while another told him the wing he had been assigned to was “worse than Beirut”.
The rat problem at the prison appears to be longstanding. A 2015 report into conditions at the jail by HM Inspectorate of Prisons referred to the issue thus: “The prison had a significant rat problem. We saw them every day and night we visited the prison and a large rats’ nest was very obvious in the grounds,” inspectors stated.
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