LONDON — A former soldier from the UK has confessed to breaking out of a prison in London by clinging to the bottom of a delivery vehicle.
Daniel Khalife, now 23 years old, altered his plea to guilty on Monday during the proceedings at Woolwich Crown Court.
However, he continues to reject allegations of breaching Britain’s Official Secrets Act by gathering information beneficial to an enemy, specifically Iran, as well as accusations related to the Terrorism Act, including the creation of fake explosives at a military installation.

Khalife was in custody awaiting trial when he escaped from Wandsworth Prison in September 2023.
He utilized a makeshift sling fashioned from trousers taken from the prison kitchen to secure himself to the underside of a catering truck.
His flight from the law ended three days later, when he was apprehended while biking on a canal pathway in West London, following an extensive nationwide manhunt that involved helicopter support and heightened security at significant transport centers.

“I acknowledge that I left the prison without permission,” Khalife stated to the jury.
He mentioned that his intention behind the escape was to eventually be recaptured and transferred to a higher-security prison, where he believed he would be less vulnerable.

The trial is ongoing concerning his other charges.
Prosecutors have presented to the jury that Khalife enlisted in the army at the young age of 16 and exhibited great potential as a soldier, but he was informed that he could not achieve his ambition of joining an intelligence unit due to his Iranian heritage.
They allege that Khalife leaked sensitive information to an Iranian intelligence officer, while he contends that the intelligence was inconsequential and that he aimed to act as a double agent for the UK — a plan partly inspired by the TV series “Homeland.”

“I was never an actual spy,” Khalife asserted earlier in the month.
“I did nothing to compromise our national security. My goal was to position myself to serve my country better.”