Northern Ireland rapist caught working with women

Serial rapist Mark Clarke was working alongside women in jail just HOURS after being recaptured by police, according to prison sources.

The depraved rapist, who attacked his latest victim at knifepoint, was working in Maghaberry prison's kitchen just 48 hours after being returned to the high security jail.

Clarke had been on temporary release from jail to attend a training course at Nutt's Corner when he absconded. The sex monster was told he was being sent back to jail because he was believed to have bought a car — a breach of the conditions of his release because each of his sex attacks had involved a car.

He remained on the run for 48 hours as desperate authorities tried to track him down.
As Sunday Life was banned from publishing pictures of prisoners on day release from jail, we found ourselves in the ludicrous position of having to go to court to seek permission, which was granted, to publish photograghs of Clarke (40) walking the streets of Belfast unsupervised on a pre-release scheme.

We had offered the Prison Service our pictures of Clarke to use in a public appeal to apprehend him, but they refused and he remained on-the-run for two days before being caught.
But when he was returned to jail in March, he was back on work detail just two days later, working in the same areas of the prison as female cooking and cleaning staff.

Said one jailhouse source: "One minute this man is Ulster's Most Wanted and there is a terrified scramble to catch him before he can strike again.

"But just two days later he has a job that has him working in the prison canteen.

"This is a man who raped a woman at knifepoint and there he is working in an area where ancillary staff are working, and I'm sure there are no shortage of knives around a kitchen. I'm sure if the women there knew of that depraved monster at close quarters, they would be horrified."

When asked about the serial rapist, a Prison Service spokesman said: " It would be inappropriate to comment on individual prisoner work allocations. All jobs are allocated by an Allocations Board and all placements are subject to a satisfactory risk assessment undertaken by security personnel."