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PRISON officers condemned the “tick-box” attitude to high risk cons yesterday after a murderer went on the run.
Arnold Pickering was arrested in Oldham after absconding from Merseyside’s HMP Kennett open prison while on day release on Saturday.
The man was convicted of murder in 1991 after stabbing a blind man who he wrongly believed was a paedophile.
He was back in custody yesterday afternoon along with another inmate he escaped with — the swastika-tattooed Thomas Moffett in prison for multiple robberies.
The Prison Officers Association said “the tick-box mentality” of the current system is “playing Russian roulette with public safety.
“The open prison estate plays a vital role in the rehabilitation of offenders but the current system was not robust enough and put the public at risk,” it added.
