An escaped murder - on the run for THREE months - phoned up police in Manchester city centre and said ‘Come and arrest me’.
Greater Manchester Police say they received a call in the early hours of yesterday from a man claiming to be serving a life sentence for murder.
He confessed to officers he had absconded from HMP Kirkham, a low security open prison in Lancashire, and wanted to hand himself in.
Sounding ‘agitated’, he told them: “I’m a prisoner on a life sentence on the run. Come and arrest me.”
Police raced to a site outside the Stock Exchange, on Norfolk Street, currently being occupied by a group of homeless activists, where the caller had asked officers to come and pick him up.
When officers arrived they arrested a 45-year-old man who was then taken into custody.
Police said it is not clear if the man had been staying inside the building - which is owned by ex-Manchester United footballer Gary Neville.
A GMP spokesman confirmed that police received a call at 2.13am from a ‘very agitated’ man.
They added: “Shortly after 2am on Thursday 12 November 2015 a man rang police from outside the old Stock Exchange building on Norfolk Street.
“He informed us that he was an absconder from HMP Kirkham, where he was serving a life sentence for murder, and wanted to hand himself in.
“As a result of the call, a 45-year-old man was arrested and taken into custody.
“It is not clear if he had been staying in the homeless project in the old Stock Exchange building or not.”
Located between Preston and Blackpool, HMP Kirkham is a category D - or open - prison with capacity for 630 inmates.
Former Manchester United captain, Neville plans to transform the Grade II-listed Stock Exchange building into a luxury hotel.
Earlier this month he signed a deal with council bosses and social housing provider Riverside Care and Support to help homeless people living at the building.
Anyone staying at the building is assessed and where needed, given help to access support for issues including mental health and drug and alcohol addiction.
Support workers visit on a regular basis to help homeless people find temporary accommodation and offer assistance to access benefits.
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “A HMP Kirkham prisoner absconded on Monday 24th August. Police were notified immediately and he has now been returned to custody.”
They added that offenders who abscond from open prisons are not returned.
