Joseph McCann went on a rape rampage after being freed from prison by mistake

Britain’s most dangerous rapist Joseph McCann was wrongly freed from jail before attacking 11 women and children, sources have said.

The serial rapist should have been recalled to prison indefinitely after he committed a burglary while on licence for a offence he committed in 2008.

Instead, he was handed a new fixed prison sentence and released automatically half way through, without Parole Board involvement, in February 2019.

After being let back onto the streets, McCann abducted, raped and held prisoner women and girls aged between 11 and 71 years old.


He made the knife-point attacks during a two-week vodka and cocaine fuelled rampage in April.



The predator was eventually caught up a tree after being chased by police officers who interrupted his attempt to rape two 14-year-old girls.

Footage of serial rapist Joseph McCann on a bus in Greater Manchester after attacking a family at their house (Picture: PA)

The mistake in his prison release echoes the concerns over London Bridge attacker Usman Khan, who was automatically released on licence half way through his prison sentence.

McCann, 34, had been given an indeterminate sentence for the public protection (IPP) in 2008 after admitting breaking into and burgling the home of an 85-year-old man.

Following his release on licence in 2017, McCann committed the second burglary and should have been put back in prison under the IPP, PA sources said.

After being convicted of his second offence, the rapist insisted he wanted to live ‘a crime free life’ to look after his partner and two children.

Judge Frederick Marr-Johnson then told him: ‘I think there is a risk of you causing long term psychological harm in the future.’

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McCann’s three-year determinate sentence did not take into account his earlier offending.

After spending 18 months inside he should have gone before a parole board hearing to be assessed, because he was subject to the life sentence under the IPP.

But he was released without any meeting on February 15 this year because prison staff were not aware he had been jailed indefinitely in 2008.

His release in February came two months before he began his sex attacks. The vile rapist has been found guilty of 37 counts relating to 11 women and children, including rape, kidnap and false imprisonment (Picture: PA) Following his arrest in May, the Ministry of Justice carried out a serious further offence review into McCann’s case. The review is understood to have identified an error in the probation service failing to recall McCann when he committed the burglary and led to one member of staff being demoted, according to PA sources. Chief executive of HM Prisons and Probation Service Dr Jo Farrar has ‘apologised unreservedly’ for failings in Mccann’s case. It took just seven and a half minutes for the jury at the Old Bailey to find McCann guilty of all 37 counts against 11 women he preyed on across London, Hertfordshire and the North West. After re-offending McCann should have been back in prison indefinitely but was let out after 18 months (Picture: SWNS.COM) In a statement CPS prosecutor Tetteth Turkson said: ‘Joseph McCann behaved with shocking depravity. ‘He preyed on women and young children with regard only for himself. ‘His victims endured horrifying acts of sexual violence and were subjected to a truly terrifying ordeal. ‘It was through persistence and bravery that some of them managed to escape. ‘They showed great strength of character in recounting their stories to police and giving evidence to the court – reliving some of what must have been the darkest moments of their lives. ‘It is with the power of this evidence, and the courage of the victims in giving evidence, that Joseph McCann has been convicted of his crimes. ‘I hope today’s verdicts provide some comfort to the victims and allows them to focus on moving on and rebuilding their lives.’ Joseph McCann trying to run away from by police just before being arrested Picture: PA) McCann, from Harrow, north-west London, refused to attend his trial but appeared by video link from prison. It can now be reported that during the trial he ‘zoned out’ and cowered under a blanket on the floor of his cell rather than face jurors in court. He instructed his barrister to insist on his behalf that the victims either consented to sex or that nothing happened at all. However he failed to give his lawyer Jo Sidhu QC any evidence to back up his bizarre claims. Got a story for Metro.co.uk? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. For more stories like this, check our news page.