Murderer who escaped on day release is found

Samuel McKinley did not return to Maghaberry Prison on Thursday - he was arrested early on Sunday morning.

PSNI
Author: Naomi HollandPublished 18th Nov 2018
Last updated 18th Nov 2018

A murderer who escaped while on day release has been found in Belfast and arrested.

Samuel McKinley, 57, is serving a life sentence for the murder of a man in Southampton in 1996, but he absconded while on day release from Maghaberry Prison, Lisburn, on Thursday.

It is not the first time McKinley has evaded police, having escaped a number of times since 2002.

He is known to have connections in East Belfast and the Ards/Ards peninsula area, and originates from Shankill, Belfast.

Police have thanked the public for their assistance in tracking the prisoner down.

Earlier, a spokesman for the Northern Ireland Prison Service said: "Mr McKinley had been returned to custody in February of this year following the revocation of his licence.

"Since his return to custody Mr McKinley has been granted four previous periods of temporary release, in response to recommendations from the Parole Commissioners. The Northern Ireland Prison Service are working with the Police Service of Northern Ireland to return this prisoner to lawful custody.

"The Prison Service cannot hold people indefinitely and pre-release testing is a vital component in preparing prisoners for release back into society."