Mum terrified for teen son in jail after 'shank attack'

A young inmate at the troubled Parc prison was reportedly "lured" into another prisoner's cell and attacked with a "shank". The alleged victim, 19, fears for his life, his mother told WalesOnline. A manager at the jail in Bridgend emailed the mum confirming her son was "unfortunately" assaulted on Monday evening a few weeks into his three-year sentence for possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence. The email states: "He began to engage with another prisoner that he thought he knew and was lured into a cell where the assault took place." The manager added that he had expressed "concerns" over the incident to the prison's security team and had written a "substantial" report aimed at keeping the teen safe in prison, which in recent years has been plagued by violence as well as drug deaths . The mum said she received a call from her traumatised son after the attack. He told her an inmate had set upon him with a shank – a makeshift bladed weapon – cutting him from his ear to his neck. "I don't think it was a deep wound," she said. "The prison bandaged his neck and he didn't need to go to hospital. But the prisoner who did it was shouting he was going to kill him." Her son told her it came about because another prisoner had offered a financial reward for anyone who attacked him. She said her son was part of a gang on the outside and that a feud with a rival gang has spilled into the prison itself. The firearm offence that led to her son being imprisoned was linked to the same gang feud, she added. She said: "He is so vulnerable and stressed out. They've put him in solitary confinement since it happened, which they say is for his own protection, but we don't understand why he can't be moved to a different block rather than being in solitary. "Being locked in his cell is having a really bad impact on his mental health. He's only a young boy and I'm very worried for him. They've said he'll be in solitary for 10 days before they review it. I've complained to the prison but I feel powerless." G4S – the private security giant that runs Parc – declined to comment on the solitary confinement complaint but said: "A prisoner received a minor cut that was treated on-site by healthcare staff. No hospital treatment was required." The G4S manager, in his email to the mum, wrote: "I apologise that you feel aggrieved and let down. We aim to rectify this ongoing issue as soon as possible, although it proves challenging, due to it being a local prison and local offenders on every unit." WalesOnline has reported extensively on failings at Parc in recent years. In February an inspection report found drugs continued to be "far too easily available" at the jail and that inmates faced "significant restrictions" to their daily regime due to staff shortage. And last year a damning report concluded the prison's standards had "declined significantly" from 2022 because of G4S winning a 10-year contract to run it. The report pointed to serious deficiencies including cell windows that could be easily opened from inside allowing drugs to be pulled in from drones – an issue first reported by WalesOnline months earlier . Last year also saw two alleged stabbings at the prison including one by an inmate said to have fashioned a sharp weapon from a tin can while high on the potent cannabinoid spice . In April 2025 there was a leak of messages exchanged by prison staff. They appeared to show prison officers gloating about beating inmates and making fun of inmates self-harming. Authorities eventually decided not to take further action after eight Parc officers were arrested in connection with the texts. But five of those arrested were sacked, two resigned while under investigation, and one received a final warning. You can read more about that here . South Wales Police has been asked if it is investigating the "shank" incident from Monday. G4S did not respond when asked if a report had been made to police or if the weapon had been recovered. Get daily breaking news updates on your phone by joining our WhatsApp community here . We occasionally treat members to special offers, promotions and ads from us and our partners. See our Privacy Notice .