One of the most concerning enquiries we’ve ever had arrived over the weekend regarding a prisoner who is due to be released shortly. Our Bristol Polygraph examiner answered the query sent in by a worried sister.
Q: Can you find out if my brother has been radicalised in prison?
I’m writing to you because I am deeply concerned about my brother who is due to be released on probation from prison shortly. He was sent to prison for drug dealing and was due to be released when he had served half of his sentence. But he got another 6 months added for having a fight with a gay inmate.
When he told me about the extra time I was quite horrified by what he said. He considered homosexuality to be disgusting and that the gay inmate should die because of it. My brother has converted to Islam whilst in prison and since that time has changed completely. He was always very open-minded, with a live and let live attitude, but now seems almost brainwashed. There are several Islamist terrorists locked up in the prison where he is being held.
On release from prison one of the conditions is that he lives with me. I wasn’t concerned before he converted but now I am. Whenever we speak he rambles on endlessly about alleged atrocities Britain and the USA have committed in the Middle East. He has nothing good to say about our country.
Quite frankly I am scared and don’t know what to do. I read recently that the government is thinking about introducing lie detector tests for monitoring terrorists. What I don’t know is if the prison knows that my brother has converted to Islam and whether they consider him to be a danger to the public.
I may be over reacting but there is something very wrong with my brother. He says that I should covert because unbelievers will have a bad time when a caliphate is established in Britain. I told him not to be ridiculous and he became very angry.
If they are not going to monitor him with lie detector tests when he is released, could I arrange one privately? I don’t want him living with me and my children without being sure we are safe. And I would never forgive myself if he harmed other people due to his misguided beliefs.
F. D., Bristol
Response from Bristol Polygraph Examiner
Radicalisation and the way to deal with it is becoming a problem. As you say, the government has proposed a new Bill to include polygraph tests for monitoring terrorist offenders. They are already used in managing serious sex offenders and domestic abusers when they are released from jail.
Your brother is not currently a terrorist although I am fairly certain the prison authorities will know he has converted to Islam. Naturally converting to this religion doesn’t make him a terrorist. But his conversations with you suggest that he has been taught an extreme form of it.
You could discreetly contact the prison and draw the Governor’s attention to it or perhaps the police. For the little time he has left to serve he may be monitored more closely inside. It may also result in him having to take compulsory lie detector tests when he comes out if the Government’s proposed Bill is passed by then.
Book a lie detector test
Alternatively you can book a lie detector test for him online for the day that he comes out. He will need to agree to the test before we can administer it.
We will need to consider the questions we ask him very carefully but we will be able to establish whether or not he has been radicalised. If he has, the Government’s Prevent Programme may be of assistance.
I suggest you call us on our free helpline (07572 748364) to discuss the matter further. We will not share your information with anyone without your permission and your call will be confidential. If you call please tell our customer service representative that the Bristol Polygraph Examiner has suggested you call for more information.
South West Polygraph Service
If something is bothering you and you need to establish the truth, contact us to find out if a lie detector test can assist. With offices throughout the South West and UK wide a polygraph examiner is never far away.
