Language-barrier concerns raised after Libyan prisoner found hanging at HMP Leeds

A prison watchdog has flagged concerns over language issues after a Libyan prisoner was found hanging in his cell.

Zacaria Gauji died in HMP Leeds in October 2023, and a report by the Prisons & Probation Ombudsman (PPO) published this week raised issues with an “inconsistent use of interpreting services”.

The 37-year-old had varying claims across his record about his grasp of English, but the PPO concluded he could not converse to a good level.

He was only provided with an Arabic-speaking keyworker just a day prior to his death and did not have a chance to speak with him.

The report suggests it was “difficult to say” how high his risk of suicide was and “whether Leeds should have offered him more support because interpreting services were used so inconsistently”.

He had been subject to suicide watch on more than one occasion, smashed up his cell a number of times and at one point was found with a noose around his neck.

Mr Gauji was charged with affray and possession of offensive weapon and initially remanded into HMP Durham in December 2022.

He was moved to HMP Hull in January 2023, where suicide concerns were raised.

He was transferred to HMP Leeds in August where the suicide concerns were not deemed necessary.

They wrongly recorded that Mr Gauji had no self-harm history. They also ticked that he did not need any help in understanding English.

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He was found hanging in his cell on the afternoon of October 26, 2023. No note was left.

The PPO concluded: “Staff recorded that he used hand gestures and was limited to basic conversation and it is evident from the records that when the telephone interpreting service was used or he spoke to Arabic-speaking staff, his answers were fulsome and provided insight into his concerns that was simply not obtained when the exchange was in English.

“Given that staff rarely used the interpreting service we consider it would have been very difficult for them to have properly assessed his risk.

“We conclude that there was little evidence that Mr Gauji was at increased risk of suicide before his death but that was largely due to the failure to recognise the importance of using interpreting services.

“The investigator spoke to the Head of Safety and Equalities and the Head of Healthcare. Both agreed that use of the interpreting service could be improved.”