Dundee killer Robbie McIntosh was monitored for signs of radicalisation after converting to Islam while behind bars, The Courier can reveal.
McIntosh, 32, was midway through his sentence for the brutal murder of Dundee civil servant Anne Nicoll when he became a Muslim.
It means McIntosh, who was able to convince prison authorities he was not a danger to the public and eligible for home leave, may have been allowed out for prayers at a nearby mosque while in Castle Huntly.
Is is understood McIntosh was monitored for signs of potential radicalisation while behind bars.
McIntosh was just 15 years old when he murdered Anne Nicoll in a frenzied attack on Dundee Law in 2001.
He stabbed the 32-year-old 29 times and tried to blame the murder on a friend.
McIntosh was sentenced the following year and told he must spend 15 years behind bars.
It is understood he converted to Islam around five years into his sentence, grew a full beard and wore the taqiyah, the Muslim skullcap.
McIntosh was allowed out on home leave as he neared the end of his sentence last year.
Now clean shaven once more, he attempted a second murder within days of getting out of prison.
He attacked dog walker Linda McDonald with a dumbbell in Templeton Woods.
It was only the intervention of two brothers who chased McIntosh away that saved her life.
Police arrested him at his mother’s house in Bridgefoot shortly after the attack.
He appeared for sentencing at the High Court in Aberdeen last year with a shaved head and sideburns.
A spokesman for the Scottish Prison Service said they could not comment on individual prisoners.
However, he said prisoners in the open estate are allowed out to attend religious services, of any faith, if risk assessments suggest they are not a threat to the public.
“That’s happened for a long time,” he said.
“Do we monitor prisoners for signs of radicalisation? Yes.”
The spokesman added that other than being given halal food and meals served before dawn and after sunrise during Ramadan, Muslim prisoners are given no other special considerations.
The Muslim population in UK prisons has risen by 50% in a decade and now stands at 13,200.
Muslim men make up 15% of the total UK prison population, compared to just 5% of the overall population.
A 2016 study by Cambridge University found more converts to Islam in prison are seeking a way to impose discipline on their lives.
However, the report warned a lack of support on their release means many go on to reoffend.
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