A murderer was on the run from an open prison in Scotland.
Tayside Police revealed on Thursday they were searching for 57-year-old John Burt Brown after he failed to return to HMP Castle Huntly near Dundee.
Police said detectives in Perth were on the lookout for Brown. He was expected to return from home leave on Wednesday.
His disappearance comes three days after another prisoner, Brian "the Hawk" Martin, handed himself into police after going on the run for a week from the same jail. Martin is serving a ten-year sentence for a firearms conviction; he also absconded from prison 22 years ago.
The disclosure from police that Brown had failed to return to the prison came about four hours after First Minister Alex Salmond and Justice Minister Kenny MacAskill had come under opposition attack during First Minister's Questions over the Martin case.
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Brown was sentenced to life imprisonment in February 1976 for murder. He was transferred to Castle Huntly from HMP Shotts in February of this year.
Police describe Brown at five foot, five inches in height, with short brown hair and green eyes. He is known to have family and friends in the Glasgow area.
Anyone who has seen the man since May 27, or anyone who knows his current whereabouts, are asked to contact police.
Later on Thursday, Bill Aitken, Conservative Justice spokesman, said: "I am especially concerned by the fact that this murderer went missing yesterday (Wednesday), meaning that either Kenny MacAskill and Alex Salmond knew about it and misled Parliament at First Minister's Questions, or they were ignorant of the escape, which shows the depth of the crisis and how they have lost control of the system."
Mr Aitken demanded: "Now is the time for the fullest possible independent inquiry into the operation of open jails, something which we have been calling for since last week."
Mr MacAskill refused to answer reporters' questions over whether he knew about the latest abscond before the open prison estate was discussed during First Minister's Questions.
"These are operational matters for the SPS (Scottish Prison Service) and for the Scottish police service," he said. "We don't interfere as a Justice Department and I don't interfere as a Justice Secretary."
In a statement later, he added: "Absconds from the open estate will happen, however tight the criteria applied to those sent there, because of the nature of open prisons, and we take each one extremely seriously.
"In the case of this individual, who has failed to return from home leave, he will be located by the police and returned to custody."
