Prisoner is barred from entering jail

A PRISONER mistakenly freed by security firm Reliance just hours before he was due to stand trial returned to a Capital jail - only to be refused entry.

Reliance officers based at Edinburgh Sheriff Court released the 32-year-old after a paperwork mix-up.

But when he returned to Saughton Prison he was turned away because there was no record of him being due back. The Scottish Prison Services has now launched an investigation into the blunder.

The inmate, who cannot be named for legal reasons, appeared at court on Wednesday morning on minor charges and was granted bail. But he was supposed to remain in custody for the start of an afternoon trial for assault.

It is understood Reliance released him after his first appearance, not realising he faced the more serious case later. The man returned to court on Thursday morning and was placed back in Reliance custody and returned to jail.

A Reliance spokeswoman said: "I can confirm there was an incident, but cannot go into details because there is still an outstanding case. Reliance officers acted on the information they were given."

The security firm has come under fire after a series of recent errors.