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Hewell Prison Information

• HMP Hewell Grange: It is classified as a Category D open prison, providing the lowest level of security among prison categories. It focuses on preparing individuals for their eventual release into the community.
• HMP Hewell: It is a Category B closed prison, offering a higher level of security to house individuals who pose a higher risk of escape or require a more controlled environment.
• HMP Hewell Grange: It primarily accommodates adult male offenders serving the final stages of their sentence in an open setting.
• HMP Hewell: It primarily accommodates adult male offenders serving sentences of varying lengths in a closed environment.
• Accommodation: Both HMP Hewell Grange and HMP Hewell provide living units equipped with basic amenities. HMP Hewell Grange offers open living units, while HMP Hewell provides individual cells in a closed setting.
• Education and Vocational Training: The prison offers educational programs and vocational training opportunities to develop inmates' skills and improve their employability upon release.
• Work Opportunities: Inmates have access to work placements and employment opportunities within the prison, such as maintenance, cleaning, and kitchen roles.
• Healthcare: Hewell Prison has an on-site healthcare unit staffed with medical professionals who provide primary healthcare services to prisoners. Mental health support, substance abuse programs, and specialist services are also available.
• Family Contact: The prison recognizes the importance of maintaining family relationships and supports visits and contact with family members, subject to specific guidelines and regulations.
• Sports and Physical Activities: Hewell Prison promotes physical fitness and offers access to sports facilities and organized activities to encourage a healthy and active lifestyle.
• Resettlement Support: The prison provides pre-release planning and support to assist inmates in their transition back into the community. This may include assistance with accommodation, employment, and accessing community-based support services.

Contact Information

Booking a visit to hewell prison.

Unlimited Prison Phone Calls Package

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• Crime, justice and the law
• Prisons and probation

Visit someone in prison

Use this service to request a social visit to a prisoner in England or Wales. There’s a different way to book a prison visit in Northern Ireland or a prison visit in Scotland .

To use this service you need the:

• prisoner number
• prisoner’s date of birth
• dates of birth for all visitors coming with you

If you do not have the prisoner’s location or prisoner number, use the ‘Find a prisoner’ service .

You can choose up to 3 dates and times you prefer. The prison will email you to confirm when you can visit.

The prisoner must add you to their visitor list before you can request a visit. This can take up to 2 weeks.

Request a prison visit

Visits you cannot book through this service.

Contact the prison directly if you need to arrange any of the following:

• legal visits, for example legal professionals discussing the prisoner’s case
• reception visits, for example the first visit to the prisoner within 72 hours of being admitted
• double visits, for example visiting for 2 hours instead of 1
• family day visits - special family events that the prison organises

Help with the costs of prison visits

You may be able to get help with the cost of prison visits if you’re getting certain benefits or have a health certificate.

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HMP Hewell, Visits and getting there

House blocks 1-6  Mon-Fri: 14:00 – 16:30 Sat & Sun: 09.00 – 11.30 & 14.00 – 16.30

House block 8 (The Grange Resettlement Unit) Tue- Thu: 14:00 – 15:30 Sat &  Sun: 13:45 – 15:45

To book a visit for House blocks 1 – 6 telephone 0300 060 6503, lines open 09.00 to 18.00, Monday to Friday (except Bank Holidays) or e-mail [email protected] . Visits must be booked al least two working days before the visit. To book online, visit: www.gov.uk/prison-visits .  All you need is  the name and date of birth of the person you are visiting and  their prisoner number

You can choose up to 3 possible dates and times. Prison booking staff will check what’s available and confirm your visit by email. You’ll also receive your visiting order (VO) number by email. You must bring this with you when you visit. If you’ve made an online visit booking request and haven’t received a confirmation email within 1-3 working days, email [email protected]

In The Grange Resettlement Unit the prisoner books the visits himself with the visits officer and will advise you when to visit. The prisoner keeps the Visiting Order and hands it into the visits officer on the morning of your visit. Only people named on the VO can attend, remember to bring suitable ID. Visits are held in the main hall of the building.

There is a visitor’s centre serving house blocks 1-6 with a small children’s play area in the visits room. There is no visitor’s centre for The Grange.

Transport to the Prison

If you want to plan your journey on public transport visit the the traveline web site (click here) . It is an excellent way to plan your visits.

HMP Hewell is in a rural location and not well served by public transport. The nearest station is Redditch about 5 miles away.

A Community Transport service will operate on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday picking up from Birmingham New Street railway station, Coventry railway station and Redditch railway station and then onto the establishment. Bookings for the service must be made in advance on 0800 316 9048 and service users must register using the above free phone number before travel. Return fares are applicable and can be paid to the driver on the day of travel.

If travelling by car make sure that you use the correct postcode : B97 6QQ. The Grange Resettlement Unit is on a different part of the site and has its own entrance which is signposted from the first roundabout as you enter the site. There is ample parking at both sites.

Return to HMP Hewell

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We can introduce you to  experienced  lawyers can help you with parole,  probation,  immigration, adjudications, visits and any other complaints  and disputes you have with the Prison Service.

The solicitors are all experts on how the Prison Service/Criminal Law  system works and will be able to provide to you the necessary advice and support to ensure you or your loved ones are treated fairly. These lawyers are "small enough to care about you, but big enough to fight for you"

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Shooter Files by f.d. walker

Street Photography Tips, Interaction, Travel, Guides

Apr 24 2017

City Street Guides by f.d. walker: A Street Photography Guide to Moscow, Russia

*A series of guides on shooting Street Photography in cities around the world. Find the best spots to shoot, things to capture, street walks, street tips, safety concerns, and more for cities around the world. I have personally researched, explored and shot Street Photography in every city that I create a guide for. So you can be ready to capture the streets as soon as you step outside with your camera!

At over 12 million people, Moscow is the largest city in Russia and second largest in Europe by population ( Istanbul is #1). An urban, cosmopolitan metropolis with more than enough glitz and glam to cater to the elite, but without losing its fair share of Soviet era roughness around the edges. It can be fast paced, brash, busy, and trendy like other big cities, but it has its blend of West meets Russia atmosphere and beauty that provides plenty of unique interest. The Red Square is as famous as it gets, but there’s so much more to this city, including the most beautiful subway system you’ve ever seen. It would take years to capture all of Moscow, but that means you have an endless amount of areas to discover.

So here’s a Street Photography guide so you can be ready to capture all that Moscow has to offer before you even arrive!

• Patriarch’s Pond
• Old Arbat Street
• Maroseyka Street
• Tverskoy Boulevard

Top 5 Street Spots:

1. red square.

The Red Square is the most famous square in not just Russia, but all of Eastern Europe. The name actually doesn’t come from the color of the bricks or communism, but from the name in Russian, Krásnaya, once meaning “beautiful” before its meaning changed to “red.” This large plaza is what you see on the cover of guide books and magazines for Moscow, with St. Basil’s Cathedral being the center piece next to Lenin’s Mausoleum surrounded by the Kremlin Wall. Of course, the Red Square attracts hordes of tourist due to the main attractions, but all that activity around an interesting atmosphere does provide street photo opportunities. It’s also the central square connecting to the city’s major streets, providing a good starting point to explore outward.

You’ll also find the popular pedestrian only Nikolskaya Street connecting the Red Square to Lubyanka Square. This line of expensive shops includes plenty of activity, while also leading you to another popular square. Filled with history rivaling any city, the Red Square and surrounding areas are the heart and soul of Russia.

2. Patriarch’s Ponds

Patriarch’s Ponds is one of the most exclusive neighborhoods in Moscow. Despite the name being plural, there’s only one large pond, but it’s worth a visit with your camera. It’s a popular spot for locals and expats to come relax or take a stroll around the pond. You get an interesting mix of young and old too, from young love to “babushkas” feeding pigeons. It’s a very peaceful park atmosphere in one of the nicer areas within the city center, while bringing enough activity for street photography. 

The pond is shallow and in the winter becomes a popular spot for ice-skating too. The area is also well-known for the location in the famous Russian novel, The Master and Margarita. 

3. Old Arbat (Stary Arbat)

Old Arbat is the most famous pedestrian street in Moscow, and dating back to the 15th century, also one of its oldest. Originally, it was an area of trade, but soon became the most prestigious residential area in Moscow. During the 18th century, Arbat started attracting the city’s scholars and artists, including Alexander Pushkin. Cafes lined the streets and impressive homes filled the neighborhood. Since then, New Arbat street was created as a highway in the area, while Old Arbat was paved for a 1km pedestrian only walkway.

Due to the historic buildings, famous artists that lived here, and the bohemian atmosphere, Old Arbat has become a big attraction for tourists today. Now, there’s a mix of cafes, restaurants, souvenir shops, street performers, street merchants and other attractions for visitors, and some locals, to come enjoy. It can get really busy here and there’s usually something interesting going on so it’s a good street to come walk with your camera for guaranteed life.

4. Gorky Park

One of the most famous places in Moscow is Gorky Park. The official name is Maxim Gorky’s Central Park of Culture & Leisure, which gives you an idea of what goes on here. When built, it was the first of its kind in the Soviet Union. Divided into two parts, it stretches along Moscow River. One end contains fair rides, foods stands, tennis courts, a sports club, a lake for boat rides, and more. This end brings more active life due to its number of attractions, while the other end is more relaxed, where you’ll find gardens, trees, older buildings, and an outdoor amphitheater.

Gorky Park attracts mostly locals so it’s a good spot to capture the non-tourist side of Moscow life. Muscovites come here to escape the city and unwind in a picturesque setting. The park remains alive outside of the warmer months too, especially when the lake turns into the city’s largest outdoor skating rink. I’d recommend taking the metro out here to spend at least half a day exploring the massive park’s life with your camera.

5. Maroseyka Street

Maroseyka Street is a popular area not too far from the Red Square. The long, winding street turns into Pokrovka and is lined with restaurants, cafes, bars and places to stay. It’s actually where I like to stay when I’m in Moscow due to its location and solid street photography opportunities itself. You have Kitay-gorod station near and if you keep walking southwest, you’ll get to the Red Square. But if you walk northwest, as it changes to Pokrovka, you can find a long street of activity for photography with its own interesting atmosphere.

6. Tverskoy Boulevard

Tverskoy Boulevard is the oldest and longest boulevard in Moscow, beginning at the end of Nikitsky Boulevard, and finishing at Pushkin Square, a spot to come for activity itself. The boulevard is made up of two avenues, with pedestrian walkways in-between. You’ll find grass, shrubbery, trees, benches and more walking it’s almost kilometer length. Many people come here to enjoy some relaxation, walk their dog, or just to use it to walk wherever they’re going. Its center location also provides a nice place to walk with your camera near plenty of other spots you’ll want to check out anyway.

Sample Street Walk:

For a full day of Street Photography, covering some of the best spots, you can follow this sample street walk for Moscow:

• Start your morning walking around the Red Square (1), while exploring the surrounding area, including Nikolskaya Street
• Then walk northwest to Patriarch’s Ponds (2) and slowly walk the pond and surrounding area with your camera
• Next, walk east to the Pushkin Monument and stroll down Tverskoy Boulevard (6)
• Once Tverskoy Boulevard (6) ends, it will turn into Nikitsky Boulevard. Follow this down until you get to the start of Old Arbat Street (3), across from Arbatskaya station
• After you’re done walking down Old Arbat Street (3) for more street photography, spend some time checking out Moscow’s beautiful metro stations
• To finish off the day with more street photography, get off the metro near Red Square (1) again, Maroseyka Street (5) or wherever you’re staying for the night.

3 Things I’ll Remember about Shooting in Moscow:

1. museum metro.

The Moscow metro system was the first underground railway system in the Soviet Union and today includes 203 stations across 340km of routes. The elaborate system has some of the deepest stations in the world too, with escalators that seem to go on forever. None of this is what makes it so special, though. Many of its stations feel like stepping inside a museum, making it without a doubt the most interesting and beautiful metro system I’ve been in.

When built, Stalin wanted to make the metro stations “palaces for the people” with marble, chandeliers, and grand architecture. The best part is the variety of architecture and styles used, making many of the stations a completely different experience visually. You could easily spend a whole day traveling the stations and there are even tours available for people who wish to do just that. My advice, though, would be just to buy a ticket and hop on and off at different stations, while exploring different lines. The museum-like surrounding mixed with the crowds of characters can make for a great photography experience.

Since there are so many stations, here are some of my favorites to check out:

• Novoslobodskaya
• Mayakovskaya
• Elektrozavodskaya
• Komsomolskaya
• Ploschad Revolyutsii
• Dostoyevskaya
• Prospekt Mira

2. Moscow is Big

It’s no secret that Moscow is a big city, but it can feel even bigger with how spread out much of it is. This is especially true if you compare it to cities outside of Asia. If I compared it to cities in Europe, I’d probably say only Istanbul would warrant more time to really discover the depths of this city. Most only explore around the Red Square and surrounding area, but that is such a small part of the city. Although, that central area does give you plenty to see on its own.

Fortunately, I had a good friend living in the city to show me around, but it opened up my eyes even more to how much there is to discover in Moscow. It’s a big city with a variety of atmosphere that can take you from “east” to “west” and trendy to rugged depending on where you go. I’d imagine you’d have to live here a while to really know the city.

3. Cosmopolitan Mix of East meets West

Modern skyscrapers mixed with amazing architecture, a world-class metro system with museum-like beauty, trendy fashion and chic clubs, Moscow is a rich mix of Russian culture and history in a more western cosmopolitan package. There is a push to keep the Russian culture, while also pushing forward with a modern metropolis the whole world will envy. This comes with an impressive skyline, that continues to grow, and endless modernities, but with soviet nostalgia and atmosphere mixed in for good measure.

Mixed in with this grand western cosmopolitan atmosphere, is a strong national pride in Russia. This includes their famous leader, Vladimir Putin. Maybe no other place will you see a country’s leader more often. All over, from the pricey tourist shops to the underground walkway stalls, you’ll find goods with Putin’s likeness covering them. From t-shirts to magnets to Matryoshka dolls. There’s a strong national pride that can be seen around the city, which also extends to their leader. Moscow is many things. It’s East meets West, modernizations meets Soviet era, and a whole lot more.

What To Do For a Street Photography Break?:

Eat at a stolovaya.

Stolovayas are Russian cafeterias that became popular in the Soviet days. You grab a tray and walk down the line of freshly prepared local dishes, and select whatever you want from the chefs. They’re usually inexpensive and a much better value than restaurants, while giving you the opportunity to try from a wide selection of everyday Russian food. They’re also very tasty. I always include some borsch on my tray and go from there. The places themselves are all over Moscow and usually come with Soviet-era aesthetics to complete the experience.

Street Safety Score: 7

*As always, no place is completely safe! So when I talk about safety, I’m speaking in general comparison to other places. Always take precaution, be smart, observe your surroundings and trust your instincts anywhere you go!

Being the 2nd largest city in Europe with over 12 million people, you’re going to have your dangerous areas, but for the most part, it feels safe walking around. Russia is statistically higher in crime compared to most of Europe, but this generally doesn’t apply to tourists and visitors. Around the Red Square and surrounding city center, you should feel completely safe walking around. Pick pocketing can happen, but no more than other touristic places. I always explore Moscow freely without coming across too much to worry about. It’s a spread out city, though, so of course it matters where you are. Just use basic street smarts, know where you are and Moscow shouldn’t give you a problem. 

People’s Reaction Score: 7

Moscow is fast paced, big city life, which usually means people aren’t too concerned with you, or your camera. I don’t find people notice or pay much attention to me when I’m out taking photos in Moscow. For the most part, people just go about their day. You shouldn’t get too many looks or concern. But it can depend on the area you are in. The more you stick out, the more you might get noticed with suspicions. I’ve never had any problems in Moscow, or Russia, but just be careful who you’re taking a photo of if you get out of the city center. Other than that, it’s about average for reactions. 

Street Tips:

Learn the alphabet .

Much of Moscow, including the metro system, doesn’t use english. The Russian alphabet uses letters from the Cyrillic script, which if you aren’t familiar with it and don’t know the sounds, can be hard to decipher the words. This is most important for street names and metro stops when trying to get around. It can save confusion and make it easier getting around if you learn the basic alphabet. At the very least then, you can sound out the words to see which are similar in the english conversion, which can help matching them to maps. When out shooting street photography, getting around is as important as anything. So save yourself some time and frustration by learning the Russian Alphabet.

Use the metro

While Saint-Petersburg feels very walkable for a city its size, Moscow can feel very spread out, even for its bigger size. Outside of the Red Square area, you can have plenty of walking before getting anywhere very interesting, so you’ll need to take the metro a lot if you really want to explore the city. Maps are deceiving here too, it will always be further than it looks.

Another reason it’s less walkable than Saint-Petersburg is its completely different set-up. Moscow’s streets are mostly contstructed in rings with narrow, winding streets in-between. This is common with medieval city cities that used to be confined by walls, but you usually don’t have it in a city this massive. Saint-Petersburg has a more grid-like pattern that also uses the canals to help you know your way around. When it comes to navigating on foot in Moscow, it can be more difficult, so bring a map and take the metro when needed. It’s why Moscow’s metro carries more passengers per day than the London and Paris subways combined.

Explore other areas if you have time

Moscow is really big. While most people stay around the Red Square within the Boulevard Ring, there’s so much more to the city. I covered some other spots outside of this circle, but if you really want to see the city, you’ll need time. If you do have time, some other areas I’d check out first are Zamoskvarechye, along some of the south and western Moscow.

Inspiration:

For some more inspiration, you can look through the Street Photography of Moscow photographer Artem Zhitenev  and check out 33 of my photos taken in Moscow .

Conclusion:

Moscow’s name brings a certain mystique, but once you’re there it might bring a different atmosphere than you expect. It’s big and sprawling, but beautiful in many ways. It can feel like a European capital on a grand scale, but you can definitely find its Russian side in there.

The urban sprawl of Moscow can be intimidating, but give it enough time and you’ll be rewarded with plenty to discover. All with the world’s best metro system to take you around.

I hope this guide can help you start to experience some of what Moscow contains. So grab your camera and capture all that Moscow has to offer for Street Photography!

If you still have any questions about shooting in Moscow, feel free to comment below or email me!

(I want to make these guides as valuable as possible for all of you so add any ideas on improvements, including addition requests, in the comment section!)

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Watch CBS News

Moscow court rejects opposition leader Alexey Navalny's appeal against his prison sentence

Updated on: February 20, 2021 / 12:43 PM EST / AP

A Moscow court on Saturday rejected Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny's appeal against his prison sentence, even as the country faced a top European rights court's order to free the Kremlin's most prominent foe.

A few hours later, a judge in a separate case ordered Navalny to pay a fine for defaming a World War II veteran.

During the first court hearing, Navalny urged Russians to stand up to the Kremlin in a fiery speech mixing references to the Bible and "Harry Potter."

Navalny, 44, an anti-corruption crusader and President Vladimir Putin's most vocal critic, was arrested on Jan. 17 upon returning from Germany, where he spent five months recovering from a nerve-agent poisoning that he blames on the Kremlin. Russian authorities have rejected the accusation.

Earlier this month, Navalny was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison for violating terms of his probation while convalescing in Germany. He appealed the sentence and asked to be released. A Moscow City Court judge instead reduced the prison sentence to just over 2 1/2 years, deducting a month-and-a-half that Navalny spent under house arrest in early 2015.

The sentence stems from a 2014 embezzlement conviction that Navalny has rejected as fabricated and the European Сourt of Human Rights has ruled to be unlawful.

Navalny has been held in Moscow's Matrosskaya Tishina prison, but Russian news reports said that after losing his appeal, he would likely be sent to a prison in the western part of Russia within the next few days to serve out his sentence. 

His arrest and imprisonment have fueled a huge wave of protests across Russia. Authorities responded with a sweeping crackdown, detaining about 11,000 people, many of whom were fined or given jail terms ranging from seven to 15 days.

In his speech at the hearing, Navalny referenced the Bible as well as "Harry Potter" and the animated sitcom "Rick and Morty" as he urged Russians to resist pressure from authorities and challenge the Kremlin to build a fairer and more prosperous country.

"The government's task is to scare you and then persuade you that you are alone," he said. "Our Voldemort in his palace also wants me to feel cut off," he added, in a reference to Putin.

"To live is to risk it all," he said, citing "Rick and Morty." "Otherwise, you're just an inert chunk of randomly assembled molecules drifting wherever the universe blows you."

Navalny also addressed the judge and the prosecutor, arguing that they could have a much better life in a new Russia.

"Just imagine how wonderful life would be without constant lying," he said. "Imagine how great it would be to work as a judge ... when no one would be able to call you and give you directions what verdicts to issue."

He insisted that he was unable to report to the authorities in line with his probation requirements while he was convalescing in Germany after his poisoning, emphasizing that he returned to Russia immediately after his health allowed.

"I wasn't hiding," he said. "The entire world knew where I was."

Navalny said he was an atheist before but has come to believe in God, adding that his faith helped him face his challenges. He said he believed the Bible phrase that those who hunger and thirst for righteousness are blessed, and that he felt no regret about deciding to return home to Russia.

"Even though our country is built on injustice and we all constantly face injustice ... we also see that millions of people, tens of millions of people, want righteousness," Navalny told the court. "They want the righteousness and sooner or later they will have it."

Asked about the impact of Navalny's prison sentence on Russia's politics, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that the country's "rich and multifaceted" political scene will develop regardless of the verdict.

Russia has rejected Western criticism of Navalny's arrest and the crackdown on demonstrations as meddling in its internal affairs.

In a ruling Tuesday, the European Court of Human Rights ordered the Russian government to release Navalny, citing "the nature and extent of risk to the applicant's life." The Strasbourg-based court noted that Navalny has contested Russian authorities' argument that they had taken sufficient measures to safeguard his life and well-being in custody following the nerve agent attack.

The Russian government has rebuffed the European court's demand, describing the ruling as unlawful and "inadmissible" meddling in Russia's affairs. Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported that the Russian Justice Ministry on Saturday sent a letter to the court asking it to revise its order.

In the past, Moscow has abided by European Court of Human Rights rulings awarding compensations to Russian citizens who have contested verdicts in Russian courts, but it never faced a demand by the European court to set a convict free.

In a sign of its long-held annoyance with the Strasbourg court's verdicts, Russia last year adopted a constitutional amendment declaring the priority of national legislation over international law. Russian authorities might now use that provision to reject the ECHR's ruling.

After losing his appeal, Navalny had a second court hearing on charges of slandering a World War II veteran and was ordered to pay a fine of 850,000 rubles (about $11,500). Prosecutors asked for a 950,000-rubles ($13,000) fine.

Navalny called the 94-year-old veteran and other people featured in a pro-Kremlin video last year as "corrupt stooges," "people without conscience" and "traitors." He rejected the slander charges, describing them as part of official efforts to disparage him.

Navalny said at the hearing that his accusers "will burn in hell."

• Alexei Navalny
• Vladimir Putin

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Man allegedly 'treated like an animal,' drank toilet water at HMP while awaiting deportation

Congolese citizen had served his criminal sentence but remained at prison on immigration grounds.

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A man was held at Her Majesty's Penitentiary in St. John's for more than a year after serving his prison sentence, enduring "catastrophic" conditions while federal authorities sorted out his immigration status, documents show.

While at HMP, one of the country's oldest prisons, Doudou Mpumudjie Kikewa was allegedly "treated like an animal," deprived of water and forced to "drink from the toilet," according to hearing transcripts from the Immigration and Refugee Board, a tribunal that makes decisions on immigration matters.

Conditions at HMP have repeatedly been  condemned as deplorable. During his time at the penitentiary, the citizen of Congo, also known as Congo-Kinshasa, also faced "shocking" and "racist" treatment, according to the transcripts. 

The documents show the Francophone was repeatedly placed in solitary confinement at the prison, which had no French services available.

• HMP inmates barred from speaking to their lawyers due to guard shortage, law society warns
• Only 1 company so far wants to replace HMP — the same company that led the last bid

Convicted of identity theft, fraud and breaches of court orders in August 2019, Kikewa, 34, should have left prison about a year later. Instead, he remained at HMP until March 2022.

Serving what immigration lawyers call "double punishment," the permanent resident was declared inadmissible by the immigration board and a deportation order was issued in June 2020. He was kept in provincial prison while awaiting deportation because the board believed he presented a flight risk and a danger to the public.

In early March, Radio-Canada reported that Newfoundland and Labrador was the only province not to have stopped detaining migrants in provincial prisons or to have committed to phase out the practice. The province has since told Ottawa that as of March 31, 2025, it will no longer allow federal authorities to hold detainees in provincial prisons purely on immigration grounds.

Deportation delayed multiple times

Kikewa's deportation to Congo, a country he hadn't set foot in since he was a teenager, was delayed multiple times. Transcripts show he refused to co-operate with Canada Border Services Agency employees and wouldn't take a COVID-19 test, a measure required by Congolese authorities. His file also underwent a procedural review in Federal Court, which prolonged his case.

As Kikewa's stay at HMP dragged on, documents show his mental state appeared to deteriorate.

"[Kikewa] had begun experiencing distressing mental health issues and had been placed in solitary confinement and under suicide watch, as he had been observed banging his head repeatedly against the wall," reads a federal immigration court judgment from January 2022. 

In a statement submitted to the immigration board in February 2021, the assistant superintendent at HMP explained the prison's "inability to offer this inmate the same services that are afforded to the rest of the inmate population." 

"We do not offer programming in French and we are unable to offer ethnic diversity. Further to this, this individual does not have any family support within the area, he does not have any money in his account to purchase hygiene products and/or the canteen, he does not have any community resources for interaction through visits or phone calls."

Violent incidents with correctional staff

Newfoundland and Labrador doesn't have any federal detention centres for immigrants. In monthly detention review decisions from the immigration board, Kikewa's detention at HMP was repeatedly described as the only option available given the lack of "viable alternatives" in the province.

While Kikewa was eventually granted a transfer to a detention centre in Quebec, a province where members of his family reside and correctional workers speak French, the move took months.

"Mr. Kikewa cannot be transferred aboard a commercial plane because of security concerns, so it must be done by a private plane with the help of the RCMP," noted immigration board judge Dianne Tordorf during a July 15, 2021 hearing.

• Over $4M spent since 2007 on plans for a penitentiary that has never been built
• Defence lawyer calls for public inquiry into death of HMP inmate Seamus Flynn

A transfer attempt occurred sometime in late summer or early fall 2021, but failed. Judge Élise Leclerc-Gagné noted, according to a transcript, that during the attempt Kikewa had allegedly received threats from a correctional officer who "said he would make his life difficult before sending him to Montreal."

Kikewa was allegedly "placed on the ground and strangled for around 30 minutes." He also received kicks to his body, according to the Feb. 15, 2021, transcript. A correctional officer also allegedly used racial slurs.

Sedative allegedly given without authorization

On March 3, 2022, about 19 months after his preventive detention at HMP began, Kikewa arrived in Montreal — but not without violence.

"What the board has understood is that there were many measures taken to secure [Kikewa]," said immigration board judge Ethan Friedman during a hearing on March 15, 2022. 

"Mr. Kikewa explained that he had been cuffed, that he … wore a mask, he couldn't see, they gave him a needle without his authorization, he had enormous difficulty breathing, he was in his seat for three or four hours for the flight. At a certain point, he passed out," said Friedman.

Friedman said Canada Border Services Agency agents had administered the sedative to help the detainee with his distress during the flight.

"The [CBSA] tried to control a difficult situation," he said.

Once Kikewa arrived at the federal detention centre in Montreal, he was kept in isolation and took only two showers between March 2 and 15, 2022, according to a hearing transcript.

"He hasn't changed his clothes since arriving. He has the same underwear on," said Friedman during a hearing on March 31, 2022.

Radio-Canada was not able to speak to Kikewa. His lawyer, Pierre-Olivier Marcoux, declined an interview because he also had not been able to reach his client.

Radio-Canada was also not able to confirm whether Kikewa's deportation has taken place.

'I think it's being handled OK right now'

Kikewa's treatment raises serious questions about the conditions faced by people detained for immigration reasons in Newfoundland and Labrador.

The provincial justice and public safety minister, John Hogan, said March 4 that immigration detention is not a common practice in Newfoundland and Labrador.

"The goal is to maintain public safety when it is needed," Hogan said. "I think it's being handled OK right now."

In total, 28 people were detained on immigration grounds in Newfoundland and Labrador between 2019 and 2023, according to the CBSA. The majority were held at HMP.

Newfoundland and Labrador's citizen's representative received two complaints based on immigration detention at provincial correctional facilities in the last year. Kikewa's lawyer also previously submitted a complaint to the citizen's representative based on his treatment at HMP.

"Detention is used as a last resort," wrote CBSA spokesperson Karine Martel in a statement.

In a statement, the provincial Justice Department said "detention of individuals on purely immigration-related grounds continues to be rare in Newfoundland and Labrador, with only two instances recorded since 2022."

"Once [Kikewa's] sentence had been served for criminal convictions, Adult Corrections advocated strongly for the Canada Border Services Agency to take custody of the individual," added department spokesperson Eric Humber. 

"Any action involving this inmate while in custody in Newfoundland and Labrador are a result of risks towards himself, staff and/or other inmates. Every inmate is subject to the rules and procedures of correctional facilities."

On March 12, the provincial government told CBSA that provincial prisons will stop accepting individuals detained solely on immigration grounds as of March 31, 2025. Newfoundland and Labrador is the last Canadian province to announce it would phase out the controversial practice.

Download our  free CBC News app  to sign up for push alerts for CBC Newfoundland and Labrador.  Click here to visit our landing page .

Corrections

• A previous version of this story stated Her Majesty's Penitentiary was the oldest prison in Canada. In fact, it is one of the oldest. Mar 19, 2024 8:59 AM NT

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Patrick Butler is a Radio-Canada journalist based in St. John's. He previously worked for CBC News in Toronto and Montreal.

• Find him on Twitter @Patrick__Butler

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Inside Russia’s penal colonies: A look at life for political prisoners caught in Putin’s crackdowns

FILE In this file photo made from video provided by the Moscow City Court on Feb. 3, 2021, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny makes a heart gesture standing in a cage during a hearing to a motion from the Russian prison service to convert the suspended sentence of Navalny from the 2014 criminal conviction into a real prison term in the Moscow City Court in Moscow, Russia. Navalny, President Vladimir Putin’s fiercest foe, has become Russia’s most famous political prisoner. He is serving a nine-year term due to end in 2030 on charges widely seen as trumped up, and is facing another trial on new charges that could keep him locked up for another two decades. (Moscow City Court via AP, File)

FILE Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny looks at photographers standing behind a glass of the cage in the Babuskinsky District Court in Moscow, Russia, on Feb. 20, 2021. Navalny, President Vladimir Putin’s fiercest foe, has become Russia’s most famous political prisoner. He is serving a nine-year term due to end in 2030 on charges widely seen as trumped up, and is facing another trial on new charges that could keep him locked up for another two decades. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, File)

FILE - Detained protesters are escorted by police during a protest against the jailing of opposition leader Alexei Navalny in St. Petersburg, Russia, on Jan. 31, 2021. Memorial, Russia’s oldest and most prominent human rights organization and a 2022 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, counted 558 political prisoners in the country as of April -- more than three times higher than in 2018, when it listed 183. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - Opposition leader Alexey Navalny, speaks with riot police officers blocking the way during a protest rally against Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s rule in St. Petersburg, Russia, on Feb. 25, 2012. Navalny, President Vladimir Putin’s fiercest foe, has become Russia’s most famous political prisoner. He is serving a nine-year term due to end in 2030 on charges widely seen as trumped up, and is facing another trial on new charges that could keep him locked up for another two decades. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - Police block a protest against the jailing of opposition leader Alexei Navalny in Yekaterinburg, Russia, on Jan. 23, 2021. Memorial, Russia’s oldest and most prominent human rights organization and a 2022 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, counted 558 political prisoners in the country as of April -- more than three times higher than in 2018, when it listed 183. (AP Photo, file)

FILE Sasha Skochilenko, a 32-year-old artist and musician, stands in a defendant’s cage in a courtroom during a hearing in the Vasileostrovsky district court in St. Petersburg, Russia, on April 13, 2022. Skochilenko is in detention amid her ongoing trial following her April 2022 arrest in St. Petersburg on the charges of spreading false information about the army. She has spent over a year behind bars. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - Russian opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza is escorted to a hearing in a court in Moscow, Russia, Feb. 8, 2023. Kara-Murza, another top Russian opposition figure, was sentenced last month to 25 years on treason charges. (AP Photo, File)

FILE In this handout photo released by the Moscow City Court, Russian opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza stands in a glass cage in a courtroom at the Moscow City Court in Moscow, on April 17, 2023. Kara-Murza, another top Russian opposition figure, was sentenced last month to 25 years on treason charges. (The Moscow City Court via AP, File)

FILE - Alexei Gorinov holds a sign “I am against the war” standing in a cage during hearing in the courtroom in Moscow, Russia, on June 21, 2022. Gorinov, a former member of a Moscow municipal council, was convicted of “spreading false information” about the army in July over antiwar remarks he made at a council session. Criticism of the invasion was criminalized a few months earlier, and Gorinov, 61, became the first Russian sent to prison for it, receiving seven years. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - Andrei Pivovarov, former head of Open Russia movement stands behind the glass during a court session in Krasnodar, Russia, on June 2, 2021. Pivovarov, an opposition figure sentenced last year to four years in prison, has been in isolation at Penal Colony No. 7 in northern Russia’s Karelia region since January and is likely to stay there the rest of this year. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - Andrei Pivovarov, former head of Open Russia movement, speaks with media in Moscow, Russia, on July 9, 2020. Pivovarov, an opposition figure sentenced last year to four years in prison, has been in isolation at Penal Colony No. 7 in northern Russia’s Karelia region since January and is likely to stay there the rest of this year. (AP Photo/Denis Kaminev, File)

FILE - Riot police detain two young men at a demonstration in Moscow, Russia, on Sept. 21, 2022. Memorial, Russia’s oldest and most prominent human rights organization and a 2022 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, counted 558 political prisoners in the country as of April -- more than three times higher than in 2018, when it listed 183. (AP Photo, File)

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TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — When Alexei Navalny turns 47 on Sunday, he’ll wake up in a bare concrete cell with hardly any natural light.

He won’t be able to see or talk to any of his loved ones. Phone calls and visits are banned for those in “punishment isolation” cells, a 2-by-3-meter (6 1/2-by-10-foot) space. Guards usually blast patriotic songs and speeches by President Vladimir Putin at him.

“Guess who is the champion of listening to Putin’s speeches? Who listens to them for hours and falls asleep to them?” Navalny said recently in a typically sardonic social media post via his attorneys from Penal Colony No. 6 in the Vladimir region east of Moscow.

He is serving a nine-year term due to end in 2030 on charges widely seen as trumped up, and is facing another trial on new charges that could keep him locked up for another two decades. Rallies have been called for Sunday in Russia to support him.

Navalny has become Russia’s most famous political prisoner — and not just because of his prominence as Putin’s fiercest political foe, his poisoning that he blames on the Kremlin, and his being the subject of an Oscar-winning documentary.

He has chronicled his arbitrary placement in isolation, where he has spent almost six months. He’s on a meager prison diet, restricted on how much time he can spend writing letters and forced at times to live with a cellmate with poor personal hygiene, making life even more miserable.

Most of the attention goes to Navalny and other high-profile figures like Vladimir Kara-Murza , who was sentenced last month to 25 years on treason charges. But there’s a growing number of less-famous prisoners who are serving time in similarly harsh conditions.

Memorial, Russia’s oldest and most prominent human rights organization and a 2022 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, counted 558 political prisoners in the country as of April — more than three times the figure than in 2018, when it listed 183.

The Soviet Union’s far-flung gulag system of prison camps provided inmate labor to develop industries such as mining and logging. While conditions vary among modern-day penal colonies , Russian law still permits prisoners to work on jobs like sewing uniforms for soldiers.

In a 2021 report, the U.S. State Department said conditions in Russian prisons and detention centers “were often harsh and life threatening. Overcrowding, abuse by guards and inmates, limited access to health care, food shortages and inadequate sanitation were common in prisons, penal colonies, and other detention facilities.”

Andrei Pivovarov , an opposition figure sentenced last year to four years in prison, has been in isolation at Penal Colony No. 7 in northern Russia’s Karelia region since January and is likely to stay there the rest of this year, said his partner, Tatyana Usmanova. The institution is notorious for its harsh conditions and reports of torture.

The 41-year-old former head of the pro-democracy group Open Russia spends his days alone in a small cell in a “strict detention” unit, and is not allowed any calls or visits from anyone but his lawyers, Usmanova told The Associated Press. He can get one book from the prison library, can write letters for several hours a day and is permitted 90 minutes outdoors, she said.

Other inmates are prohibited from making eye contact with Pivovarov in the corridors, contributing to his “maximum isolation,” she said.

“It wasn’t enough to sentence him to a real prison term. They are also trying to ruin his life there,” Usmanova added.

Pivovarov was pulled off a Warsaw-bound flight just before takeoff from St. Petersburg in May 2021 and taken to the southern city of Krasnodar. Authorities accused him of engaging with an “undesirable” organization -– a crime since 2015.

Several days before his arrest, Open Russia had disbanded after getting the “undesirable” label.

After his trial in Krasnodar, the St. Petersburg native was convicted and sentenced in July, when Russia’s war in Ukraine and Putin’s sweeping crackdown on dissent were in full swing.

He told AP in a letter from Krasnodar in December that authorities moved him there “to hide me farther away” from his hometown and Moscow. That interview was one of the last Pivovarov was able to give, describing prison life there as “boring and depressing,” with his only diversion being an hour-long walk in a small yard. “Lucky” inmates with cash in their accounts can shop at a prison store once a week for 10 minutes but otherwise must stay in their cells, he wrote.

Letters from supporters lift his spirits, he said. Many people wrote that they used to be uninterested in Russian politics, according to Pivovarov, and “only now are starting to see clearly.”

Now, any letters take weeks to arrive, Usmanova said.

Conditions are easier for some less-famous political prisoners like Alexei Gorinov , a former member of a Moscow municipal council. He was was convicted of “spreading false information” about the army in July over antiwar remarks he made at a council session.

Criticism of the invasion was criminalized a few months earlier, and Gorinov, 61, became the first Russian sent to prison for it, receiving seven years.

He is housed in barracks with about 50 others in his unit at Penal Colony No. 2 in the Vladimir region, Gorinov said in written answers passed to AP in March.

The long sentence for a low-profile activist shocked many, and Gorinov said “authorities needed an example they could showcase to others (of) an ordinary person, rather than a public figure.”

Inmates in his unit can watch TV, and play chess, backgammon or table tennis. There’s a small kitchen to brew tea or coffee between meals, and they can have food from personal supplies.

But Gorinov said prison officials still carry out “enhanced control” of the unit, and he and two other inmates get special checks every two hours, since they’ve been labeled “prone to escape.”

There is little medical help, he said.

“Right now, I’m not feeling all that well, as I can’t recover from bronchitis,” he said, adding that he needed treatment for pneumonia last winter at another prison’s hospital ward, because at Penal Colony No. 2, the most they can do is “break a fever.”

Also suffering health problems is artist and musician Sasha Skochilenko, who is detained amid her ongoing trial following her April 2022 arrest in St. Petersburg, also on charges of spreading false information about the army. Her crime was replacing supermarket price tags with antiwar slogans in protest.

Skochilenko has a congenital heart defect and celiac disease, requiring a gluten-free diet. She gets food parcels weekly, but there is a weight limit, and the 32-year-old can’t eat “half the things they give her there,” said her partner, Sophia Subbotina.

There’s a stark difference between detention facilities for women and men, and Skochilenko has it easier in some ways than male prisoners, Subbotina said.

“Oddly enough, the staff are mostly nice. Mostly they are women, they are quite friendly, they will give helpful tips and they have a very good attitude toward Sasha,” Subbotina told AP by phone.

“Often they support Sasha, they tell her: ‘You will definitely get out of here soon, this is so unfair here.’ They know about our relationship and they are fine with it. They’re very humane,” she said.

There’s no political propaganda in the jail and dance music blares from a radio. Cooking shows play on TV. Skochilenko “wouldn’t watch them in normal life, but in jail, it’s a distraction,” Subbotina said.

She recently arranged for an outside cardiologist to examine Skochilneko and since March has been allowed to visit her twice a month.

Subbotina gets emotional when she recalled their first visit.

“It is a complex and weird feeling when you’ve been living with a person. Sasha and I have been together for over six years — waking up with them, falling asleep with them — then not being able to see them for a year,” she said. “I was nervous when I went to visit her. I didn’t know what I would say to Sasha, but in the end, it went really well.”

Still, Subbotina said a year behind bars has been hard on Skochilenko. The trial is moving slowly, unlike usually swift proceedings for high-profile political activists, with guilty verdicts almost a certainty.

Skochilenko faces up to 10 years if convicted.