AN elderly man jailed for historic sex offences died in a hospice hours after being transferred there. 

Details of the final days of 75-year-old Thomas Clarke's life were revealed in a report from the Prisons & Probation Ombudsman, including that two applications for release on compassionate grounds were made on his behalf.

Clarke, who was from Birstall, was jailed for 15 years in October 2016 for multiple historic sex offences and was incarcerated in Armley prison. 

The report said he had previously been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and heart disease, had misused alcohol for a number of years, and had also spent three years in a mental health hospital for depression and anxiety.

"In May 2017, Mr Clarke was diagnosed with dementia. A dementia care plan was created to manage his care and he was regularly reviewed by healthcare staff, the prison’s mental health team and social care staff," said the report.

"While at Leeds, Mr Clarke was subject to a number of hospital admissions for conditions related to both his Parkinson’s disease and dementia. On each occasion he returned to the prison’s healthcare inpatient unit once his condition had improved."

By 2019, he was said to be "extremely unwell" and it was determined it would not be appropriate to attempt resuscitation if went into cardiac arrest. 

In February 2020, Clarke was taken to hospital after he reported vomiting a dark brown liquid. He was then diagnosed with aspiration pneumonia.

After four further hospital admissions, prison staff were told that the only treatment option left was palliative care. 

An application for early release on compassionate grounds was made on Clarke's behalf, but was refused on the grounds that his risk to the public had not reduced.

By July, his health had further deteriorated and he was transferred to Wheatfields Hospice and the prison submitted another application for early release, but Clarke died before a decision was made.

He was moved back to Armley but his condition continued to deteriorate.

Clarke was taken to Wheatfields at 11.15am on August 4 and at 4.45pm the same day, his death was confirmed.

The report said: "The clinical reviewer concluded that the care Mr Clarke received at HMP Leeds was equivalent to that which he could have expected to receive in the community.

"He made some recommendations about training for healthcare staff involved in Advance Care Planning for prisoners and referrals to the local falls team."