Rapist Flees on Eurostar After Prison Error: London 2026

Key Points

• Accidental Release: Bernadin Dedic, a 48-year-old businessman from Ealing, was mistakenly freed from HMP Wormwood Scrubs on 6 February after a court administrative error.
• Administrative Mix-Up: An official at HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) accidentally transposed digital case files, wrongly recording that Dedic had been granted bail and notifying the prison.
• Immediate Flight: Within hours of his release, Dedic used his Bosnian passport to board a Eurostar train and escape to Bosnia, despite his UK passport being retained by the Metropolitan Police.
• Conviction in Absence: An Isleworth Crown Court jury convicted Dedic on all nine counts—including four counts of rape and threatening with a knife—following a trial held in his absence.
• Legal Tactics: The defendant repeatedly delayed his trial by claiming medical emergencies, including a skiing injury and a heart attack, which the judge dismissed as manipulation.
• Extradition Process: Following the verdict, British authorities are preparing international extradition proceedings to return Dedic from Sarajevo to serve a mandatory, lengthy prison sentence.

London (Extra London News) June 10, 2026 – A convicted rapist who subjected a woman to a multi-hour ordeal at knifepoint is currently a fugitive in Bosnia after being accidentally released from a London prison due to an administrative error. Bernadin Dedic, 48, a businessman residing in Ealing, West London, was mistakenly discharged from HMP Wormwood Scrubs on 6 February. The release occurred after a court official mixed up digital files and erroneously notified prison authorities that the defendant had been granted bail. Within hours of walking free, Dedic utilized his native Bosnian passport to secure a seat on a Eurostar train, successfully fleeing the United Kingdom before the administrative blunder could be detected or rectified.

Despite his absence from the country, Dedic’s criminal trial proceeded at Isleworth Crown Court. On Tuesday, a jury convicted him on all nine counts, which included four counts of rape, two counts of sexual assault by penetration, causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent, making threats to kill, and threatening a person with a knife in a private place. Because the defendant remains at large in Sarajevo, British judicial authorities are expected to initiate formal extradition proceedings immediately to compel his return to the UK for sentencing.

Why Was Bernadin Dedic Released From HMP Wormwood Scrubs by Mistake?

The administrative failure that allowed a dangerous sex offender to walk out of custody stems from a digital data entry error within the HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS). As detailed during subsequent court hearings at Isleworth Crown Court, a court official inadvertently transposed digital case files during a routine administrative update.

This error resulted in Dedic’s case file being marked as “bail granted,” despite a judge previously ordering him to be remanded in custody due to the gravity of the allegations against him. Once the erroneous bail notice was transmitted electronically to HMP Wormwood Scrubs in West London, prison authorities processed the paperwork according to standard operational guidelines and released him.

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How Did a High-Risk Fugitive Leave the United Kingdom Without a British Passport?

The Metropolitan Police Service had systematically seized Dedic’s British passport during the initial stages of the rape investigation to mitigate his flight risk. However, because Dedic holds dual nationality, he maintained access to a valid Bosnian passport that had not been recovered by investigators.

Upon his mistaken discharge from custody on 6 February, Dedic immediately travelled to St Pancras International station in London. He used his Bosnian passport to clear border security controls and purchase a ticket for the Eurostar, crossing the English Channel into continental Europe before traveling onward to his native Bosnia.

What Happened During the Assault in West London?

The prosecution outlined a highly violent and prolonged assault that took place at Dedic’s home in West London shortly after he separated from his partner. As reported by legal correspondents covering the trial at Isleworth Crown Court, prosecutor Simon Sandford detailed the events leading up to the attack, noting that Dedic had consumed up to four bottles of red wine and snorted multiple lines of cocaine before luring his victim into the basement of his property.

According to the prosecution’s opening statement delivered by Simon Sandford, the victim turned toward the stairs and saw Dedic holding a red-handled oriental kitchen knife. As reported by Sandford, Dedic stepped toward her, gripped her tightly, and stated that

“he would kill her and then kill himself.”

The prosecutor further stated to the jury that Dedic told his victim that

“if she screamed, she wouldn’t be heard.”

Over the course of several hours, Dedic cut off the woman’s clothing and subjected her to a sequence of rapes and sexual assaults. The victim remained highly compliant during the ordeal in an explicit attempt to calm the defendant down and preserve her life.

What Excuses Did the Defendant Use to Avoid Returning for Trial?

Following the discovery of his erroneous release, a coordinated effort involving a senior judge, the Metropolitan Police, and Border Force agents was launched to facilitate Dedic’s return to the United Kingdom to face trial in March. Dedic initially engaged with the process through his instruction of a leading defense barrister, sending correspondence indicating a desire to stand trial but claiming he faced logistical hurdles in securing a valid UK travel visa.

However, the court grew increasingly skeptical of Dedic’s claims as a sequence of medical emergencies arose at critical junctures:

The Alleged Skiing Accident

At the eleventh hour ahead of his scheduled March trial date, Dedic informed his legal team that he had sustained a severe knee injury during a skiing accident in Bosnia, rendering him medically unfit to travel by air or rail. Judge Martin Edmunds KC, the Recorder of Kensington and Chelsea, reluctantly granted an adjournment, delaying the trial from March to June to allow for medical recovery.

The Alleged Heart Attack

When the rescheduled trial date arrived in June, Dedic again failed to appear in court. He communicated through his representatives that he had been rushed to a medical facility in Sarajevo after suffering an acute heart attack.

Why Did the Judge Order the Trial to Proceed in His Absence?

The trial ultimately moved forward without Dedic after his legal representatives withdrew from the case because the defendant failed to pay his defense fees. This left Dedic entirely unrepresented in the courtroom.

Judge Martin Edmunds KC reviewed the medical documentation submitted from the hospital in Sarajevo and noted that Dedic had only sought emergency medical evaluations immediately after notifying the court of his chest pains. Hospital diagnostics revealed that Dedic’s heart rate and cardiac enzymes were completely normal, resulting in his immediate discharge from the facility.

In a formal judicial ruling delivered from the bench at Isleworth Crown Court, Judge Martin Edmunds KC stated:

“This is yet another attempt by Mr Dedic to obstruct, manipulate and avoid justice.”

The judge subsequently directed the jury that the trial would proceed in the defendant’s absence, leading to the unanimous guilty verdicts on all nine counts.

How Has the Ministry of Justice and HMCTS Responded to the Error?

The accidental release of a high-risk maximum-security prisoner has prompted significant scrutiny of court administrative systems. HM Courts and Tribunals Service launched an immediate internal investigation to determine how digital data management protocols failed so systematically.

Addressing the severe lapse in administrative security, Judge Martin Edmunds KC noted the rarity of the event while emphasizing its gravity, stating during court proceedings:

“Although such errors are extremely rare, and indeed this is the only instance I am aware of when there has been an erroneous release of a prisoner held in custody to this court, we take this error extremely seriously.”

Furthermore, an official spokesperson for HMCTS issued a formal statement acknowledging the institutional failure:

“We understand the distress errors such as this can cause to those affected and instances like this have exposed deep-rooted issues across the broken justice system.”

What Are the Next Legal Steps for British Authorities?

Because Dedic was convicted in his absence, the court will proceed to schedule a formal sentencing hearing. If the defendant remains outside the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom and fails to surrender voluntarily to British law enforcement, formal international extradition protocols will be initiated.

British prosecutors and the Home Office are expected to file an official extradition request with the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina. This legal process will seek to compel local authorities in Sarajevo to arrest Dedic and deport him to the United Kingdom, where he will serve his impending prison sentence.