In 2013, Michael Adebolajo masterminded the murder of off-duty soldier Lee Rigby (pictured) near his barracks in Woolwich, South-East London

During four years behind bars, Michael Adebolajo has garnered a reputation as one of Britain’s most dangerous prisoners.

Given that his fellow inmates at HMP Frankland, the top-security jail in Co Durham where he currently resides, include the likes of child murderer Ian Huntley and serial killer Levi Bellfield, doubtless the 32-year-old would regard that as something of an achievement.

‘He spends his time working out and is strong, physically imposing and a very intimidating presence,’ says a source at the prison. ‘But it’s not just that — his devotion to radical Islam is total, unbending and all-consuming.

‘Because of that he is always giving the staff a hard time. He refers to them as kafirs and infidels and is constantly making threats against them.

‘All the time he is on the offensive, upping the tension. There have been altercations — spitting and throwing cups of urine at them. He regards himself as an active terrorist, as still being very much “in the fight”.’

To those who know anything of Adebolajo’s history that will come as little surprise. In May 2013 he masterminded the murder of off-duty soldier Lee Rigby near his barracks in Woolwich, South-East London.

He and accomplice Michael Adebowale mowed Rigby down in a car before butchering him on the street in front of passers-by.

Michael Adebowale mowed Rigby down in a car before butchering him on the street in front of passers-by

Adebolajo, soaked in blood and waving a meat cleaver, would claim the act had been carried out in revenge for the deaths of Muslims at the hands of British soldiers.

In court, he would try to justify his actions by claiming to be a ‘soldier of Allah’ who was ‘at war with the UK’. Of course, it was a hopeless defence and Adebolajo, a British-born Muslim convert, was duly convicted of murder and given a whole-life sentence, which means he should never be released.

But while many trusted that would be the last we’d ever hear of him, the reality has turned out to be very different.

Because Adebolajo has chosen — and, shockingly, has been allowed — to continue his fight against the society he professes to despise from behind bars.

This has included radicalising fellow prisoners by brainwashing them with his warped interpretation of Islam.

Indeed, the authorities have become so concerned about his activities that he recently became one of the first inmates to be moved into a ‘jihadi jail’.

Adebolajo (left) and accomplice Michael Adebowale (right) mowed Rigby down in a car before butchering him on the street in front of passers-by

HMP Frankland in County Durham, where Adebolajo is being held. A source at the prison said his devotion to radical Islam is 'all-consuming'

This unit, purpose-built at Frankland, is in effect a jail-within-a-jail, designed to stop the malign influence of religious extremists by separating them from the general prison population, at a time when the radicalisation of inmates is a major and growing problem in jails across Britain.

Adebolajo continues to make a mockery of the British judicial system. Following grandstanding at his criminal trial — where his legal aid cost taxpayers nearly £140,000 — he appealed against the conviction. Again he lost, this time at a cost to the taxpayer of £50,000 (Adebowale, his accomplice, was jailed for a minimum of 45 years and is currently a patient at Broadmoor hospital).

Now it has emerged that Adebolajo is involved in a civil suit, seeking up to £25,000 in damages following an alleged assault by prison guards.

Last week, a judge suggested that it would be ‘all the better’ if he got legal aid to pursue it, of which more later. A full trial could end up costing as much as £100,000.

Understandably, news of his latest legal escapade has infuriated Lee Rigby’s family, who accuse him of seeking ‘blood money’.

‘He deserves nothing but contempt. He lost a few teeth because he was violent and was brought under control by guards', said Lee Rugby's mother Lyn

‘This vile killer is rubbing salt into our wounds,’ Rigby’s mother Lyn, from Middleton, Manchester, has observed. ‘It is a disgrace that he would even think of asking for compensation. I’m sure this is all about antagonising the system and trying to get attention.

‘He deserves nothing but contempt. He lost a few teeth because he was violent and was brought under control by guards. Lee lost his life and I lost my son.’

Adebolajo had expected that following his murderous attack he would be shot dead by the police officers called to the scene. Instead he only suffered bullet wounds to his left arm, which is still damaged.

After nine days in hospital he was taken to HMP Belmarsh in June 2013. From the start it was clear he posed a threat to staff.

To accompany his transfer to Belmarsh, a risk assessment was done by prison officials. Details of this dossier, seen by the Mail, are contained in Ministry of Justice papers submitted to the court as part of the latest case.

Staff at the prison were warned that Adebolajo was extremely volatile and manipulative and had a tendency to become ‘fixated’ on certain staff, ‘particularly females’.

It is claimed that within days of his arrival Adebolajo had to be restrained, threatening officers and telling them to ‘watch themselves’.

‘He became argumentative, stating that he was not scared of the officers as he has been shot . . . and was not scared of anything,’ the case papers reveal. When he eventually agreed to return to his cell, he began chanting, asking Allah to ‘strike down his oppressors’.

Due to the extreme risk he posed to prison officers, a protocol was drawn up stating that any contact with him would always involve five officers dressed in protective clothing. When moving around the jail he was to place the hand of his good arm on his head and keep a set distance from staff.

Lee Rigby's wife Becky and mother Lyn put flowers at the scene where Lee died on the first anniversary of his death

On the morning of July 17, 2013, Adebolajo asked to make a phone call. In his written claim, also seen by the Mail, he alleges that on returning to his cell he suffered an unprovoked attack by prison officers. This involved him having his head forced into the cell window bars.

He says he was then forced face down on his bed, where he was struck on his elbow and stamped on.

He says the officers’ use of force was ‘unreasonable, unjustified and excessive’ and that it constituted ‘assault and battery’.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) disputes his version of events.

It claims that while he was out of the cell Adebolajo repeatedly removed his hand from his head.

On entering the cell, he did this again and then, it is claimed, started to walk towards an officer. Fearing he was going to launch an assault, two guards forced Adebolajo towards the back of the cell, where he banged against the wall. He was then pulled on to the bed as other officers helped restrain him. It is claimed that ‘reasonable force’ had been used in response to the threat of assault.

While it is accepted that Adebolajo lost two front teeth in the incident, the MoJ papers note that he was suffering from gum disease at the time and that he refused to give the teeth to the nurse (who required them ‘to prevent them drying out in order to allow them to possibly be re-implanted’).

Following a complaint at the time, the five officers were suspended. But the Crown Prosecution Service ruled out any criminal prosecution following a police investigation.

Tributes to fusilier Lee Rigby outside the Royal Artillery Barracks on the first anniversary of his murder on May 22, 2014

Now the case has reached the High Court. The papers lodged there show that Adebolajo believes he is entitled to compensation for his physical and ‘psychiatric’ injuries — but he is also seeking aggravated and exemplary damages because, he argues, the force used was excessive and represented a ‘gross affront to his personal dignity and liberty’.

He also complains that no one has yet apologised to him for what happened in the incident.

Given the crime he committed, it is hard to imagine how much fresh pain such statements must inflict on the relatives of Fusilier Rigby.

And insult was added to injury at the recent hearing in London to discuss the case. There, Mr Justice Langstaff noted that Adebolajo had not been given legal aid to pay for lawyers and so might have to represent himself at any trial.

‘If and when this case comes to trial it will be a great pity to justice, and in particular the presentation of the claimant’s case, if some means were not found to ensure he had professional help,’ said the judge. ‘If that could be done by public funds all the better.’

Given the amount of taxpayers’ money so far spent, those comments inevitably sparked a fresh wave of criticism.

But, as legal experts have pointed out, what is the alternative?

If Michael Adebolajo represents himself, the fear is that because of his lack of legal knowledge any future trial would inevitably take longer and cost more. Worse, he would be provided with a very public platform.

Bikers pay tribute to fusilier Lee Rigby outside the Royal Artillery Barracks on the first anniversary of his murder

As one barrister puts it: ‘The experience for the witnesses will be much more unpleasant if he is not represented. Have you ever watched a sadistic criminal cross-examine a witness in court?’

Of course, many will question why he even has recourse to the courts. But even convicted murderers have rights. And Adebolajo appears determined, in the words of Rigby’s mother, to use those rights ‘to antagonise the system’ in any way he can.

The same applies to his incarceration. From the moment he arrived at Belmarsh he attempted to radicalise other prisoners. As a result he was transferred to Frankland — but he continued his activities there.

As the judge in the civil case observed, referring to information supplied by the MoJ: ‘He forms relationships easily. He is charismatic. There is a large group of people who look up to Adebolajo.’

Others who have seen him at first hand confirm this evaluation.

A video still of Michael Adebolajo taken during interviews with police which was shown in court during the trial

‘He sees every inmate as a potential Islamic State soldier, whether they are Muslim or not,’ the source at Frankland told the Mail. ‘Adebolajo spends most of his waking hours preaching his distorted form of Islam to anyone who will listen. He has a big personality and some of the more vulnerable prisoners will fall under his spell.’

But the problem of the radicalisation of prisoners is not confined to one prison or one prisoner. MoJ figures show the percentage of Muslim prisoners in England and Wales has increased from 8 per cent of the prison population in 2002 to 15 per cent in 2016. In high-security jails the figure is higher still — one in five.

In one Category A establishment, Whitemoor prison in Cambridgeshire, almost half the inmates, 43 per cent, were Muslims in 2015.

The disproportionate number of Muslims being jailed is in itself cause for concern; Muslims comprise roughly 5 per cent of the population of England and Wales.

What particularly worries the authorities is the potential this offers for radicalisation.

As the number of Islamist extremists locked up for terror offences increases, they are finding fertile ground among fellow prisoners. Indeed, it is claimed that some are deliberately getting custodial sentences so they can target this pool of disaffected young men.

In turn, there is growing evidence of the spread within prisons of Muslim gangs who wield so much power that other prisoners feel coerced into converting or doing as they are bid in other ways.

Michael Adebolajo (right) and Michael Adebowale (left) walking along a footpath shortly after they murdered the British soldier

Adebolajo’s fellow prisoner Levi Bellfield — the serial killer infamous for the abduction and murder of Milly Dowler — is among those prisoners to have adopted the religion. He converted while in Wakefield prison and is now known as Yusuf Rahim.

‘He found out a paedophile had been slashed in Wakefield and thought he would be next: he was a marked man after he was convicted,’ revealed his half-sister Ann-Marie Bellfield. ‘He said they [Muslim prisoners] were good boys and would look after him . . . he got friendly with Islamic guys and didn’t have a problem.’

The danger, of course, is that as more terrorism offenders are jailed, more prisoners will be exposed to their twisted ideologies. The problem has been exacerbated by the return of jihadists from Syria and Iraq and by recent anti-terror operations.

Of the 147 terrorist inmates in 2016, 137 described themselves as Muslim. The numbers have increased significantly in the past 12 months.

To try to get to grips with the problem, in 2015 the Government commissioned a review by former prison governor Ian Acheson. His report was released in August last year, citing evidence of offenders

advocating support for ISIS and prisoners acting as ‘self-styled emirs’ to radicalise other inmates.

There were also warnings that ‘cultural sensitivity’ among staff towards Muslim prisoners could ‘inhibit the effective confrontation of extremist views’.

It was recommended that the most dangerous offenders should be isolated from the general prison population — so with this in mind, the MoJ announced the creation of three special units able to hold 28 prisoners.

The first opened at Frankland in July; others are planned for Full Sutton prison, near York, and Long Lartin in Worcestershire.

Those selected include prisoners who have been involved in planning terrorism or who are considered a risk to national security.

Once in the units, prisoners will be reviewed by experts every three months and returned to the main jail only if the threat they pose has reduced sufficiently.

The unit at Frankland is understood to be completely separate from the main wings, with a higher ratio of specially trained staff to prisoners.

The units have their own cells, exercise area and visiting facility. Officials stress they have not been set up to punish inmates — just to separate them. Prisoners still have access to TV, some computer games and have a say in their diet.

Most of the Muslim prisoners will pray together, but if they use the prayer meetings as a platform for jihadi discussions they will be further separated.

An MoJ spokesman said: ‘We are doing more than ever before to counter the spread of all forms of poisonous ideology. We have delivered on our plans to house the most subversive prisoners in separation centres and boosted the ability of frontline staff to challenge extremist views by providing more than 7,000 staff with enhanced training.’

How effective that will be in silencing the likes of Michael Adebolajo, only time will tell. But is it too little too late?

After the recent truck attack that killed eight in New York, Donald Trump took to Twitter. First he said he wanted to send the suspect to Guantanamo, before hardening his stance.

‘NYC terrorist was happy as he asked to hang ISIS flag in his hospital room . . . SHOULD GET DEATH PENALTY!’ he wrote.

A sentiment with which, given the pleasure Michael Adebolajo seems to take in making a mockery of British justice, some here will no doubt agree.