Man on the run over IPP sentence recall issues plea to justice secretary

A Bolton man who is on the run after being recalled to prison indefinitely has made a direct plea to the justice secretary to intervene in his case.

- Rajeev Syal

Matthew Booth, 33, is wanted by police for recall to prison over a crime he committed when he was 15 and for which he has served a sentence.

He was given an indefinite imprisonment for public protection (IPP) sentence, meaning he can be recalled without notice for breaches of strict licence conditions.

Booth was originally convicted of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm after he was involved in a fight, hitting someone over the head with a brick. In a separate incident, he stamped on someone's head.

At 16, he was sentenced to serve a minimum of two years and seven months. He was released in 2013. He has since been taken back to prison three times, twice for arrests that led to no charge.

He has pleaded with the justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, to intervene after being accused of restarting a relationship with his ex-partner, Abigail Vernon, with whom he has daughters aged 10 and seven, without notifying the authorities.