Blaenau Ffestiniog man returns home after Guinea prison ordeal

Paul Inch from Blaenau Ffestiniog and his colleague, Richard Perham, have returned to the UK after enduring a 100-day ordeal in a West African prison.

Richard and Paul travelled to Guinea to recover equipment from a research balloon before being arrested and accused of various charges including espionage.

They were imprisoned in a Guinea prison, known to be one of West Africa’s most overcrowded and dangerous. Following their release, they remained trapped in Guinea and unable to leave for 42 more days.

Now – 142 days after they first arrived in the country – they have flown back to the UK, landing at London Heathrow at 10.30am today (25 May).

Recovery

Paul and Richard, from Bristol, had travelled to Guinea to support the recovery of equipment from a high-altitude research balloon.

It was meant to be a simple four-day job, but within days the pair were arrested and accused of espionage, sedition, breaching national defence, and violating airspace by the authorities – charges that were entirely unfounded.

They were imprisoned in Conakry Central Prison (Maison Centrale de Conakry), a facility operating at 475% capacity and notorious for inhumane conditions.

The pair were locked into a swelteringly hot, overcrowded cell the size of a railway carriage, with individuals convicted of violent crimes. There was no space for personal belongings. The only toilet was a single latrine shared by the entire cell holding 80 inmates.

They slept head-to-toe on a single mattress, locked in a dark cell beside violent offenders, with rats crawling over them at night.

Violence

They were extorted, threatened with sexual and physical violence, and pushed to the brink. To avoid being transferred to a more violent section of the prison, they were forced to make regular extortion payments to prisoners and staff.

The water was so contaminated they had to disinfect their skin after washing. Both men suffered dehydration, gastrointestinal illness, and skin infections. Serious diseases, including malaria, tuberculosis, and dysentery, were confirmed to be circulating in the prison at the time.

There are no guards stationed inside the cell blocks. Security personnel remain at the outer gates. Inside, order is maintained by informal and often violent prisoner hierarchies. Access to food, water, safety, and medical care depends on unstable, unofficial systems of control.

Involvement

They entered Guinea under contract to Aerostar International, tasked with retrieving Aerostar balloon N254TH, which had been diverted off course by unexpected winds and was intentionally brought down in Guinea by the company.

Aerostar believed that all necessary permits for the flight and landing had been secured, but it later emerged that neither had been properly authorised.

The company informed Guinean authorities that Richard and Paul had no role in operating the balloon, no knowledge of its technical contents, and no involvement in its flight or descent.

The pair had not been briefed, trained, or given documentation as their assignment was purely logistical: retrieving equipment under the understanding that all permissions had been granted.

After suffering months of court hearings and delays, the two men were finally freed on bail on 11 April. But they remained stuck in Conakry without their passports and unable to leave the country for another 42 days.

Speaking after his arrival at Heathrow Airport today, Paul Inch said: “This is a nightmare we never imagined.

“In my work as a mountain bike guide, water safety officer, and as a volunteer with the Aberglaslyn Mountain Rescue, I understand the meaning of responsibility.

“I was in Guinea, doing my job, trusting that everything was in order. Yet I was locked away for 100 days in unbearable conditions.”

His detention also tore him away from his wife, their five children, and his three brothers. They were left to hold their families together throughout this traumatic ordeal.

Fear

Richard Perham said: “We had to literally fear for our lives each day. After we had been there for two months, the UK Ambassador walked us to the prison gate, believing we were finally being released.

“But a phone call to the prosecutor stopped it. We had to turn around and walk straight back in for another month. It was devastating.

“This was meant to be a simple 4-day job. Instead, it became 100 days trapped in a nightmare in which I missed the first steps and first words of my baby daughter, moments I can’t get back.”

Paul Inch and Richard Perham added: “We’re incredibly grateful to everyone who stood by us.

“We would not be here today without the tireless support of our MPs, Liz Saville Roberts, and Carla Denyer, who stayed closely in touch with our families throughout.

“We’re also deeply thankful to the British Embassy – especially Ambassadors Daniel Shepherd and John Marshall, and Deputy Head of Mission Mark Kelly – for their unwavering commitment.’

Liz Saville Roberts MP said: “I am delighted that Paul Inch and Richard Perham are at liberty at last after being held in Conkary Prison, Guniea under hideous conditions and then house arrest.

“This has been a nightmare for the two men and their families and friends who have been focussed, resourceful and determined to ensure that never a day went by without seeking their release.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank Foreign Office staff as well as the UK Ambassador and Embassy personnel in Guniea for their patient work in helping to secure this outcome, almost six months after the men were first seized.”