Fugitive killer Lee Nevins is still at large almost one week after absconding from jail for the second time.
The convicted murderer, from Gateshead, has been on the run since last Tuesday after failing to return to HMP Sudbury, an open prison in Derbyshire, after being out on day release.
And police have today confirmed they are still looking for him.
A spokeswoman for Derbyshire Police said: "Enquiries are still ongoing, no arrests have yet been made."
Nevins was jailed for life for the sadistic 2006 slaying of disabled Lee Jobling.
Along with accomplice Mark Lang, Nevins killed 20-year-old Lee in an unprovoked attack at his home on Gateshead's Leam Lane estate.
Both were convicted of murder and jailed for life.
Lee had overcome the odds to survive a childhood blighted by tragedy and injury, when his life was ended so cruelly in 2006.
He was just six when his mum Shirley, who was divorced from his dad, died suddenly from a brain haemorrhage. Lee and his two brothers went to live with his aunt Angela Knotts and her family in Leam Lane..
But at the age of 15, Lee suffered serious head injuries after falling from a bridge while out playing with friends. He suffered a brain injury and spent almost two weeks in a coma.
The accident left Lee walking with a limp and suffering from memory problems.
But with the support of his family, popular Lee battled on and although he was not well enough to work in the months before he died, he moved into his own flat, not far from Angela’s home.
On Saturday, April 8, 2006, Lee invited friends to his flat, on Cotemede, for some drinks, but word of the gathering got out at the local pub, and after closing time Nevins and accomplice Mark Lang made their way to his home
High on drink and drugs, the pair, who did not even know Lee, did not leave with the other guests, but stayed at the flat, where they launched their prolonged attack in the early hours.
Lang and Nevins taunted and mocked Lee before repeatedly punching and kicking him in the head.
When paramedics forced their way into Lee’s home they found him lying unconscious. He died in hospital around three weeks later.
Nevins, then 23, of Leam Lane, and Lang, 24, of Harlow Green, Gateshead, were eventually charged with murder.
They pleaded not guilty but were convicted after a two week trial, at Newcastle Crown Court, during which both killers each tried to blame the other.
Judge John Milford jailed them for life, ordering that Nevins, who had previous convictions for violence, serve a minimum of 17 years and Lang at least 16.
But in 2008 a huge manhunt was launched for Nevins after he got away after being taken from Frankland Prison to Sunderland Royal Hospital after suffering a hand injury.
Last week Angela told of her anger at learning her nephews killer had escaped again.
The 63-year-old said: "It's an insult to Lee. I just feel as if he's done this awful crime and he's not faced up to what he's done and thinks he should be free. It's just horrible because you can't think of anything else."
"They are saying to us that he's not a danger to the public and he's probably not to someone who can defend themselves. But to someone who is vulnerable he is.
"The police don't know where he is, but they say he has associates in the Northumbria area.
"They are saying he's worked hard so he's in an open prison. But they know he's an absconder. They are saying they are doing all they can to make sure he doesn't get out of the country."
Anyone with any information about Nevins' whereabouts should call Derbyshire Police quoting reference 22*563940.
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