A rapist who fled the UK after being mistakenly released from prison has claimed he warned prison staff he was not supposed to be released before leaving the country.Bernadine Didick, 48, was in pretrial detention awaiting trial accused of repeatedly raping a woman at knifepoint when an administrative error led to his release from HMP Wormwood Scrubs in February, The Independent reported.According to Didek, prison staff informed him that he was released after receiving incorrect information that he would be released on bail. Speaking to the Press Association, he said he immediately informed officers that a mistake had been made.“They told me I was being released,” Didek said. I said: Let me stay for the weekend, that’s wrong. But they kicked me out.”The error occurred after an official at Isleworth Crown Court scrambled digital case records after a hearing on February 6 and incorrectly recorded that Didick had been released on bail.
The information was then passed on to the prison, leading to his release.Within hours of leaving prison, Didek boarded the Eurostar and left the UK for Bosnia, his country of origin.Didick said previous attempts to secure bail had failed despite proposed conditions which included an £80,000 surety, accommodation at a friend’s house in Milton Keynes, restrictions on entering London and regular reporting requirements.
After leaving prison, he contacted lawyers and friends. He said some advised him to leave the country because they believed he would not get a fair trial.Didek was unable to return for his trial last March, initially due to visa difficulties. Later explanations included an injury while skiing and chest pains while traveling to the airport. The trial ultimately continued in his absence.Jurors found him guilty of four counts of rape, two counts of sexual assault by penetration, causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent, threatening a person with a knife in a private place and threatening to kill.Prosecutors said Didek consumed red wine and cocaine before attacking the victim, holding her at knifepoint, ripping off her clothes, threatening to kill her and himself.Judge Hannah Duncan rejected the explanations for his absence and said she was not convinced by the claims he had suffered a heart attack. She described his actions as another attempt to “obstruct, manipulate and avoid justice.”Asked whether he intended to return to Britain to issue the ruling, Didek replied: “No.”