Rapist who died at Forest Bank prison got 'poor standard' of mental health care after he was jailed for life
06.10.2023 - 16:49
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
A convicted rapist serving a life sentence died in custody from 'self-inflicted wounds and associated blood loss', but his 'intentions were unclear and unknown' at the time, a coroner has ruled after an inquest.
A subsequent report, however, has found the mental health care he received in prison was 'of a poor standard' and 'not equivalent to that which he could have expected to receive in the community'.
The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO), which investigates deaths in custody, said in a now-published report the management of a sudden mental health crisis Vasile Nastase suffered a day before his death at Forest Bank prison in Salford was 'very poor'.
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Healthcare bosses at the prison in Pendlebury, which is managed by Sodexo Justice Services who also provide primary health care services there, have been urged to abide by a series of recommendations, including commissioning an investigation into a decision made by a nurse not to complete an emergency mental health assessment on him on that day.
The coroner also ruled Nastase's death was 'exacerbated by his underlying heart condition'.
An inquest jury at Bolton Coroner's Court heard Nastase, from Findlay Street in Leigh, Wigan, died after being found 'covered in blood' in his cell just five days after being handed a life sentence. Romania-born Nastase was found by prison staff with 'incised wounds' to his neck, one of which had 'internally cut into his jugular vein', in the early hours of September 1, 2019, jurors were told.
The 49-year-old, who had previously been on remand at HMP Forest Bank