'Mistakes happen', says man wrongly identified as escaped terror suspect Daniel Khalife
A man who was mistaken as the escaped terror suspect Daniel Khalife in Oxfordshire, has defended the police mishap, saying "mistakes happen".
The man was questioned by detectives for around 20 minutes before they realised he wasn't the person they were looking for.
Authorities are continuing to search for Daniel Khalife who escaped from HMP Wandsworth on Wednesday.
The former soldier, who according to reports is accused of gathering information for Iran, went missing in his cook’s uniform, and is believed to have strapped himself to the underside of a food delivery lorry to escape the prison.
On Thursday (7 September) a woman alerted police that she had seen a man at Banbury train station, who she believed was Khalife.
Police held the man, questioning him and taking his fingerprints.
Posting on X the man, believed to be named Horatio, said: "Hi everyone, just made this acc to explain what happened today.
"A woman mistook me for Daniel Khalife, and alerted the police. After about 20 mins of questions (and some gd banter) i proved I wasn't the escapee after a finger print scan.
"Honestly crazy how much this has blown up.
"Just wanna clarify that when it comes to situations like these that I don't really have any stance on police.
"I'm neither for or against, I try not to get political.
"Mistakes happen, and either I was lucky that things went smoothly, or maybe privileged, or even both. I don't know."
The Metropolitan Police are continuing to work with partner agencies to track down Khalife.
More than 150 officers from the force are involved in the operation with detectives appealing for the public to help them make a 'crucial breakthrough'.
Police have said that although they don't believe Khalife poses a threat to the wider public, anyone who sees him should call 999 and not approach him.
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