Police alert over missing prisoner

Mark Powell, 32, from Featherstone, near Wakefield, absconded from Sudbury prison in Derbyshire on Thursday April 1.

West Yorkshire and Derbyshire Police have warned the public not to approach him but to contact them if they see him.

Powell attacked former miner Gilbert Northern, who was 74, with a brick in January 1995.

He was convicted of murder at Leeds Crown Court in 1996.

Mr Northern had served with the Green Howards during the Second World War and escaped to Africa from captivity in Italy.

Powell, who had been in trouble with the police since he was 13, and had previous convictions for assault and robbery, told the jury he had been drinking cider that evening and had taken diazepam tablets which left him "buzzing".

Powell is white, about 5ft 7in tall and of medium build. He has brown hair, green eyes and a fair complexion. He has a tattoo on his left forearm and two blue dots tattooed beneath his left eye.

Dozens of prisoners have walked out of Sudbury over the years – with more than 100 absconding between April 2006 and September 2007. Another 50 walked out between October 2007 and March last year.