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Police hunt for missing prisoner Police hunt for missing prisoner
(1 day later)
A man convicted of assault, robbery and firearms offences has absconded from Castle Huntly Prison in Perthshire. A man convicted of assault, robbery and firearms offences has absconded from Castle Huntly Prison, near Dundee.
Tayside Police said 28-year-old Peter Duff failed to return to the open prison on Wednesday after home leave.Tayside Police said 28-year-old Peter Duff failed to return to the open prison on Wednesday after home leave.
Duff was convicted in August 2007 and jailed for nine years. He is known to have family in the Pollock area of Glasgow. Duff was convicted in August 2007 and jailed for nine years. He is known to have family in the Pollok area of Glasgow.
He is 5ft 5in, slimly built with blue eyes, short brown hair and a pale complexion. The latest incident follows a number of high-profile escapes from Castle Huntly in recent years.
Police have asked that anyone who has information about his whereabouts to contact them. The process of transferring prisoners had been "tightened" after the earlier escape of Robert Foye, who raped a schoolgirl while on the run.
Brian Martin absconded from Castle Huntly in May last year.
The 51-year-old was moved from Shotts jail to the open estate despite clear warnings in his case files about his criminal history and previous escapes.
More pressure mounted on Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill when killer John Brown, 57, also absconded from Castle Huntly in May 2009 when he was granted a week's home leave.
Brown fled to The Gambia, in west Africa, where he was found dead in November.
Open jail
Opposition parties demanded answers about the latest case and said Mr MacAskill had yet to "get a grip" on the situation.
Conservative community safety spokesman John Lamont said: "It just gets worse for the SNP government.
"What on earth is someone doing in an open jail less than a third of the way through their sentence? And why has it taken two days for this information to come to light?"
Mr MacAskill last week accepted recommendations by Professor Alec Spencer to improve the open prison estate.
But he rejected a finding that long-term prisoners are sent to open jails too early.
The criteria for admission to open prisons is now tighter than ever Kenny MacAskillJustice secretary
Labour said Duff previously escaped from his police escort through a hospital toilet ceiling before being jailed. He was captured two days later in Glasgow.
The party's justice spokesman, Richard Baker, called for an emergency statement from Mr MacAskill.
Mr Baker said: "People will be astounded that after the high-profile absconds from the open estate that Kenny MacAskill still hasn't got a grip on the situation".
A spokesman for the justice secretary said: "Each abscond is a matter of concern, and the priority is returning this person to custody."
He added: "The criteria for admission to open prisons is now tighter than ever.
"And following the recent report into the open estate by Professor Alec Spencer, the justice secretary has asked Brigadier Hugh Monro, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, to independently review those new, tighter controls and report back later this year."