A prisoner standing trial for robbery was found dead in his cell after taking psychoactive substances such as Spice using a "modified vape", a report concluded.
Anthony Peloe, 50, had a long-list of convictions for violence and robbery, and had been made subject to an indeterminate sentence for public protection (IPP) in 2005 after a bungled attempt to hold up a Woolton travel agents at gunpoint. Peloe, originally from Speke, also made headlines in 2014 after absconding from HMP Thorn Cross open prison near Warrington.
He was on the run for 36 hours, while he walked to Speke from Warrington over farmer's fields and spent the night in a barn, before a tip-off led to his arrest in Tarbock Road, Speke. Peloe later explained he had fled the open-prison due to fears he could be attacked over a debt o wed to other inmates for tobacco.
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Peloe was eventually released on licence in 2019, but was recalled to prison the following year after being arrested and charged with another robbery. He was transferred to HMP Liverpool in Walton on October 12, 2020.
According to a Fatal Incident Report by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO), Peloe had informed staff he was on medication for heart disease and high blood pressure after suffering a heart attack in 2018. He also reported a history of heroin use and was undergoing a detox programme at the time.
In November 2020, Peloe complained of chest pains and underwent an electrocardiogram (ECG) test, which showed abnormalities and a "deterioration in his heart function" since his last scan in 2018. However, the prison records showed he refused to go to hospital for further tests.
According to the PPO report: "In January 2021, Officer A became Mr Peloe’s keyworker and saw him on January 12 for a keyworker meeting. He told us that his first conversation with Mr Peloe had been when he refused to go to hospital in November 2020.
"He said that Mr Peloe was a quiet prisoner who just wanted to get on with his time in prison and did not generally have any interest in talking to staff. He said that Mr Peloe was believed to be a Psychoactive Substances (PS) user, but he thought he only used PS when he knew that he would not be seen."
Peloe's trial for robbery began on January 25 last year, and he attended Liverpool Crown Court via video-link from the prison for the first two days .However when a prison officer, referred to as Officer B in the report, knocked on his cell at 7am on January 27 to get him ready for court, there was no response.
The PPO reports states: "[Officer B] then shook Mr Peloe by the arm and noticed he was not breathing. He called for staff assistance and pulled Mr Peloe onto the floor to start cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR). He said that Mr Peloe’s eyes were open and bulging and he was completely unresponsive, but there was no stiffness in his body."
Prison staff and nurses continued CPR until paramedics attended, but Peloe could not be saved and was pronounced dead at 8am. According to the report, one of the nurses noted "drug paraphernalia" near his body and, after his death, burnt foil and a "modified vape" were removed from the cell.
A pathologist gave the cause of death as "ischemic and hypertensive heart disease with psychoactive substance use". Toxicology reports revealed he had taken Spice-like drugs before his death, while there were also small traces of heroin in his system.
According to the PPO report: "The pathologist said that such heart disease would present a significant risk of a fatal cardiac arrhythmia developing at any time, and even more so in association with stress on the heart, such as with an increased heart rate.
"The pathologist also noted that the type of PS Mr Peloe used was considered a potent substance with multiple potential adverse effects that would be dangerous in the presence of heart disease."
The PPO report concluded that Peloe had received a normal standard of healthcare while in HMP Liverpool, but made recommendations that staff should check on prisoners undergoing court appearances to see if their "risk has changed" due to the stress.
The PPO also recognised "proactive steps" being taken to reduce drug supply into Walton prison, including the use of body-scanners, sniffer dogs, intelligence led searches and replacing cell windows to prevent delivery by drones. However, the report said: "Mr Peloe’s death is an example of the dangers of PS and illustrates why prisons must do all they can to stop its use.
"Mr Peloe’s records contain no instances of him being seen under the influence of any substances at Altcourse and Liverpool. However, the substance misuse lead acknowledged that with the current restrictions in prisoner movements since the COVID-19 pandemic, misuse of substances was more hidden than was previously the case.
"Despite the proactive steps being taken by Liverpool, it is clear that Mr Peloe was able to obtain PS. His post-mortem report also shows evidence of previous use of heroin, although we do not know if he used heroin while in Liverpool."
The PPO recommended that the governor "should continue to identify and address weaknesses in measures to prevent the supply of drugs into Liverpool and revise the substance misuse strategy in light of the findings".
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