Prisoner escaped after he thought girlfriend dumped him

Christopher Henshaw is serving time at open prison HMP Sudbury but went AWOL last month.

The 34-year-old was seen at roll call at the Derbyshire prison on the afternoon of August 11, but was missing during the evening count.

The police put out an appeal but found him shortly before 10.30am the next day, at his girlfriend’s house on Poplar Avenue, Kirkby.

Defending Henshaw, Justin Atkinson told Nottingham Crown Court: “He had been in prison for about eight weeks, was particularly low and had stopped receiving letters from his family.

“On the day in question, his girlfriend did not attend a scheduled visit and he thought his relationship had finished.

“His time at large was less than a day and he was fully compliant with the police. He expected them to arrive and was waiting for them - he let them in.”

The court heard how Henshaw was serving time for causing serious injury by dangerous driving, and had no fewer than 61 previous convictions to his name.

He had been due out in January, but adding time to his sentence, Recorder Jason Macadam said: “I have to sentence you to a custodial sentence, it’s just a question of how long.

“You were only at large for a short period of time but that was not of your own choosing.

“When you are in jail you can’t just walk off when you feel like it.”