Seven arrested over murder suspect John Anslow's escape from custody
Seven men were today arrested on suspicion of helping Black Country murder suspect John Anslow escape from police custody.
Anslow is wanted in connection with the murder of Richard Deakin and was sprung from a prison van in January 2012.
Two men were arrested in Dudley, two in Birmingham and one in Redditch. Two other men arrested today were already in police custody.
On the day of the escape 32-year-old Anslow, from Tipton, was being taken from HMP Hewell in Redditch to Stafford Crown Court for a preliminary hearing.
Anslow is still at large and detectives last month reaffirmed their determination to catch him, a year after his escape.
His escape – the first by a category A prisoner in 17 years – sparked debate in the House of Lords and a security review by the Ministry of Justice.
Father-of-two Mr Deakin, 27, was shot twice in his bed in Meadway Street, Chasetown, Staffordshire, on July 5, 2010.
He ran On Time Skips in Walsall.
