AN Ipswich mother is today appealing for help in finding her wayward son - so he can be thrown back in jail.

AN Ipswich mother is today appealing for help in finding her wayward son.

Unusually, she wants him found so he can be thrown back in jail.

Mandy Richardson claims she warned officials at the category C Blundeston prison where her son, Jamie Arnold, was being kept, that moving him to Hollesley Bay open prison would simply mean he would run away.

The 23-year-old tearaway, who has been in-and-out of jail since he was just 14, had just seven weeks of his two year, nine month sentence left to serve when he was moved to Hollesley but he absconded almost straight away.

Now Mrs Richardson wants to find him so he can be put back behind bars, and hopefully get the help she believes may save him, because she thinks he is suffering from a mental health problem.

Mrs Richardson, 43, of Fritton Close, said: “I knew this would happen. I know him better than he knows himself.

“And I told Blundeston it would happen.

“He would have just decided he'd had enough and wanted to see his friends.

“He hasn't contacted me, his father, or any of his brothers so I don't know where he is.

“He probably won't contact me because he knows I'll turn him in.”

Mrs Richardson, who had not spoken to her son for several weeks, has been fighting for him to be allowed to have a test to see if he suffers from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) which she believes may be the key to his problems.

She said: “It is a stupid thing to do but he doesn't think logically.

“He needs a test for ADHD and then if he is diagnosed he can get the medication he needs.

“If he gets help I know the problems will go away, otherwise they will just continue.”

n Do you think Mrs Richardson is right to ask for an ADHD test for her son? Do you agree with open prisons? Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich IP4 1AN or e-mail eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk

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SUFFOLK police officers are now hunting for the 23-year-old who was last seen around 2pm on Friday, November 17, and was reported missing from Hollesley Bay at about 5pm.

Arnold has connections with both Ipswich and Felixstowe and is described as white, 5ft 10ins, of medium build, with short brown receding hair, blue eyes and a spotty complexion.

He has tattoos of names on his left forearm and both biceps and has a scar on his eyebrow.

Police are advising people to see him not to approach him but to call 999.

And anyone with information about Arnold's whereabouts is asked to call Suffolk police on 01473 613500. A Suffolk police spokeswoman confirmed that once Arnold was found he would be returned to the prison service.

A SPOKESMAN for the Home Office today explained the views of family members are taken into account when a decision is taken about moving a prisoner to an open prison.

He also explained that prisoners who absconded would normally be returned to a higher category prison because they had breached the trust which had been placed on them.

However, he said he could not comment on individual cases and could not be sure if Arnold would now remain in prison for a longer time.

He said: “The nature of open prisons means that we can never guarantee that prisoners will not abscond, but the number of those who do, in relation to the prison population, is now at its lowest level for ten years.

“There have been open prisons since 1936 and they are the most effective means of ensuring prisoners are tested in the community before they are released.

“To release prisoners directly from a closed prison without the resettlement benefits of the open estate would undoubtedly lead to higher levels of post-release re-offending.

“All those located in open conditions have been rigorously risk assessed and categorised as being of low risk to the public.”