Northern Ireland justice minister accused of 'misleading Assembly' as convicted killer Gary Anderson remains at large a week on

From the Newshound archive · first published 21 September 2026 · last updated 22 September 2026.

Stormont Justice Minister Naomi Long faced angry questioning from MLAs on Monday after the Assembly Speaker said her statement last week about escaped murderer Gary Anderson "was not fully accurate." Long admitted her account reflected the information she had at the time, and apologised both to fellow MLAs and to the family of Gary Anderson's victim, Karol Kelly. Anderson, sentenced in 2023 to 15 years for stabbing father-of-five Kelly to death on a Derry street in 2018, absconded from a civilian chaperone during a court-ordered two-hour compassionate release; he had been granted temporary leave from custody to travel to Londonderry for his father's funeral the previous Monday.

A court overturned the prison service's refusal to release Anderson, ruling the risk assessment used was based on inaccurate information.

Long has ordered an independent review into how Anderson's release was handled, insisting it must be led by someone outside the Northern Ireland Prison Service and her department.

DUP leader Gavin Robinson called it "intolerable" that Anderson remains at large, with both PSNI and the Irish Republic's Garda Síochána involved in the hunt near the border.