Murderer who absconded from prison on New Year’s Day arrested after week-long manhunt
A convicted murderer and a second inmate who escaped from prison on New Year’s Eve have been arrested, police said.
Matthew Armstrong, 35, and Daniel Washbourne, 40, left HMP Leyhill in South Gloucestershire between 5pm and 8pm on January 1.
Avon and Somerset Police said both Armstrong and Washbourne were arrested on Wednesday.
Armstrong, who was convicted of murdering someone during a robbery in Warwickshire in 2009, was arrested by Warwickshire Police officers near Henley-in-Arden railway station just before 12am.
A member of the public reported seeing Armstrong, who is currently in police custody.
Washbourne, who had previous convictions for violence against persons and false imprisonment, was arrested in Bristol city center at around 1.30am.
A police spokesman said he was initially taken to hospital after police found him with pre-existing injuries, but he is now in police custody.
The spokesman added: “Armstrong was also arrested on suspicion of robbery in relation to an incident in a village near Leyhill at around 6.45pm on Wednesday, December 31, the night before he escaped from HMP Leyhill.
“A man broke into a house and stole his mobile phone and some money after threatening the people in the house.
“Following this incident, we carried out a series of investigations, including interviews with victims and house-to-house searches, which led to the arrest of Armstrong on suspicion of committing this offence.”
A third man, Aaron Thomas, was arrested by Avon and Somerset Police in Bristol on Saturday, January 3. The 39-year-old man has since been charged with escaping from lawful custody. He appeared in court on Monday, January 5, and will appear at Bristol Crown Court next February.
