Last week, police launched an appeal to find a wanted man from Welwyn Garden City who was given a two-year prison sentence back in May. The Welwyn Hatfield Times can now confirm why he wasn't behind bars.
Michael Forbes pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing a knife in a public place, assaulting an emergency worker and going equipped for theft on May 10, but on October 2, Herts police confirmed they were looking for the 37-year-old on recall to prison.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice has now confirmed that time Forbes spent in custody while on remand was counted towards his two-year sentence, and that he was also released early as part of the End of Custody Supervised Licence scheme introduced last year.
"Forbes came into custody on remand on November 18, 2023 and was sentenced on May 10 2024," the spokesperson said.
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"This time on remand prior to his sentence hearing is factored into the remaining time he is to spend in custody.
"He was released under the terms of the End of Custody Supervised Licence scheme which was introduced by the previous government in October 2023.
"Those released on licence are supervised by the Probation Service and are subject to strict licence conditions. They will be recalled to custody if they break the rules."
On October 3, just one day after the wanted appeal for Forbes was launched, he was arrested by officers, with the MoJ confirming he was "returned to custody".
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