Murderer recaptured after six-week hunt

A murderer who fled while on bail was recaptured by police last night, ending a six-week manhunt that stretched from Glasgow to Brighton.

Richard Crawford, who was convicted of the murder and rape of an 87-year-old woman, agreed to meet detectives at an address in Brighton at 6pm after police warned that they were closing in on him. Last night arrangements were being made to transfer the 41-year-old back to Scotland.

Crawford, from Paisley, near Glasgow, was described by police as a "very dangerous man". He was released on bail last December pending an appeal against conviction, but absconded just before a High Court hearing in Edinburgh.

He was jailed for life in February 2000 for the murder and rape of Mary Lynch, 87, and ordered to serve eight years for the attempted rape of a 79-year-old woman.

Detectives were confident that Crawford was in Brighton following a sighting by a member of the public and the discovery of personal belongings of his at a flat in the south-coast resort.