Details of conditions imposed upon on-the-run prisoner Gary Anderson revealed as Burrows demands answers on case
The News Letter can now reveal the details of the conditions imposed by the High Court on Gary Anderson, the prisoner who has vanished in Londonderry while attending his father’s funeral.
The funeral mass was to take place at a chapel in the Creggan area in the west of the city, about two miles from the border with the Republic, at 10am on Monday.
The justice minister Naomi Long had already told the Assembly that it was “exceptional” for a judge to set the conditions of a prisoner’s temporary release, rather than the Prison Service.
She had told MLAs that usually a prison officer accompanies the prisoner, but on this occasion it was a civilian chaperone, and that Anderson was not handcuffed to the chaperone.
Now the News Letter has had sight of the court order directly.
It stated that Anderson, who was represented in court by KRW Law, “will be released from HMP Maghaberry and brought to Derry Court House by 9.30am, and shall return to Derry Court House by 11:30 am”.
He was “to attend only at the funeral of his father at St Mary’s Church must stay with confines of the church, and not make any stops to or from the courthouse”.
This meant that Anderson did not have leave to attend his father’s cremation in Letterkenny after the funeral.
The PSNI has since said it is in contact with gardai to help hunt Anderson.
The order stated that his chaperone was “to remain with him throughout the period of his release”, and Anderson was barred from drinking or using any electronic communication device.
"Applicant representatives must contact the Judicial Review Office to advise all went to plan,” was another condition of the court order.
Of course, things did not go to plan, and Anderson was last seen in the Eastway part of the Creggan on Monday.
Previously the News Letter reported on the case of fellow Londonderry murderer James Meehan, who absconded and fled to the Republic.
He was at liberty for nine months there, and after his eventual arrest it took another three months to extradite him.
When he was brought back before a Northern Irish court a judge added an extra six months to his sentence.
Meehan had previously gone on-the-run in 2022 too, when he spent 14 months at large – also in the republic.
In addition, he had also gone on-the-run just one day before being found guilty of murder back at his trial in 2009.
The News Letter has repeatedly reported on escaped criminals in recent years, and the often sluggish efforts to get them back.
Jon Burrows, UUP leader, said of the Anderson case: “This case is deeply concerning on a number of levels.
"Ultimately, a dangerous murderer is now at large after a judge overturned the professional judgment of the Northern Ireland Prison Service and directed his release.
"It is vital that this is never allowed to happen again.
“I have long warned that the rights of perpetrators can appear to outweigh those of victims and the wider public in Northern Ireland.
"This case appears to be another disturbing example.”
He demanded to know whether the court’s decision to release Gary Anderson had been appealed by lawyers for the DoJ/Prison Service.
He also wondered if there are “lessons” for the Prison Service learn about “ensuring its decisions are properly reasoned and sufficiently robust to withstand legal challenge” after the judge ruled that a strong enough case had not been made to keep Gary Anderson behind bars, while at the same time releasing his brother, who was also doing time for the same murder.
“The minister must now grip this case, be fully transparent with the public and set out exactly what will be done to prevent this from happening again,” he said.