The complete timeline in Daniel Gee’s four-week manhunt as the gangster remains on the run

Today marks one month since former gang leader Daniel Gee escaped from prison.

Gee, who turned his own estate, Grizedale in Everton, into a 24-hour drug-trafficking hotbed, escaped from Kirklevington Grange Prison on May 27. A month on from her disappearance, Gee remains at large, with two CCTV images the only ones seen. of the one who is now 44 years old.

Gee was initially sentenced to an indeterminate sentence for the protection of the public in 2010 after being convicted of weapons offenses after plotting to arm himself in revenge against a teenager. Having escaped from an open Class D prison, it is likely that Gee would soon be eligible for parole and the completion of his sentence.

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However, when Gee is caught and returned to prison, he is likely to serve additional time due to his escape. The ECHO described the last four weeks since his disappearance and our ongoing coverage below:

May 27

The Ministry of Justice confirmed to the ECHO that Gee, once a leading member of a powerful drugs gang, had escaped from prison. Gee, who was ordered to serve at least four years behind bars – but was in his 15th year in prison when he escaped – has failed to return to prison.

A breakout is an escape that does not involve overcoming a physical security constraint. According to the Prison and Probation Service, Category D prisons are minimum security and allow eligible inmates to spend most of their day away from prison on license to pursue work, education or other resettlement purposes.

A Prison Service spokesman told the ECHO at the time: “All prisoners in category D prisons are rigorously assessed for risk and escape is rare. Offenders who break the rules are punished and face extra time behind bars and we work with the police to recapture them. this prisoner.”

May 29

Local police in Cleveland confirmed that their detectives are leading the investigation into Gee’s disappearance. The force has released a new photo of Gee, giving the public their first look at him since he was originally arrested in 2010. Along with Gee’s photo, Cleveland police released a description of him.

A spokesman said: “Gee was last seen wearing a black jumper, black Adidas trousers with a white stripe down each leg and black trainers. He was carrying a yellow JD Sports bag. He is described as “a white male, of large build, about 6 feet tall and bald.” Gee was said to have links to the North Yorkshire area as well as St Helens and Merseyside.

June 4th

Gee’s escape made national headlines following exclusive reporting by the ECHO and is becoming a main topic of conversation on a number of true crime podcasts. Billy Moore, a former boxer who spent decades involved in crime before becoming a popular podcaster, recalled his own memories of Gee on The All or Nothing Podcast.

Mr Moore said: “I remember Danny when he was in his 20s. He was a strong kid back then. He would go out on the streets and do the 80kg military press over his head, no problem.” He added: “I wouldn’t underestimate him. Don’t think of me as someone with a big ego.

“It is dangerous, but obviously it was classed as low danger to get to Kirklevington. He’s on the right track, he’s aiming for something. It’s easy to be online and call out the odds, but if they were in front of you, they’d be a force to be reckoned with. He was a great viking that would destroy you. I would be very, very careful with it.

June 5

On June 5, Cleveland police released the first piece of CCTV of Gee since he went on the run. CCTV of Gee walking towards James Cook Station in Middlesbrough has been released, showing the former gang leader wearing a pale blue T-shirt, black Adidas tracksuit bottoms with white stripes down both legs and a beige hat.

CCTV, dated the day after the escape, showed he also had a white JD bag. Gee left from the direction of the James Cook University Hospital car park. He was then believed to have boarded a train to Middlesbrough. A spokesman for Cleveland Police added: “When he boarded the train to Middlesbrough he was wearing a blue raincoat with a hood.”

June 11

Gee’s brother Darren, who previously controlled the Grizedale estate with his younger brother, spoke for the first time about his brother’s escape in an episode of the Criminal Connection Podcast.

Darren, previously jailed for ordering murder but who has since become an anti-knife campaigner, told the podcast host: “(Daniel) has been on the run for the last few days. I hope it’s a planned escape. If it’s an emotional escape, it’s going to go wrong. If it’s planned, then I hope he leaves the country.”

June 12

Former prison officer Neil “Sam” Samworth, who has become a true crime podcaster since leaving the service, has spoken out for the first time since Gee went on the run. Mr Samworth, who counts Gee’s brother Darren as an ex-convict, said the man’s status as an escaped prisoner with an intermediate sentence would count against him when he is eventually brought to justice.

He said the Class D open prison can be dangerous for someone of Gee’s status, telling his podcast Real Porridge with Sam Samworth: “One, you’re tempted to go down, two, you can get involved in criminal activity. You can in jail, but it’s more open, more drugs, phones and the like. If you have a reputation, you might be challenged.”

Mr Samworth added: “That’s where the danger is for someone like Danny Gee, who’s on the run … back in the day, if you got out of a category D with a 30-day sentence, you’d be sentenced to another 30 days. Your return Danny Gee is an IPP prisoner. We don’t know why he went down, maybe it was temptation, maybe something happened.

“Danny, if he got out, he could turn his life around…Danny is a parolee. So depending on what happens depends on his future. It’s very hard to get up and stay free. A lot of people, criminals that I knew, they went to Spain and the like, outliving the authorities and you can incriminate other people.

“…If he surrenders or is caught by authorities, he could face up to two more years before being eligible for parole. This is the IPP sentence. Things are changing right now. Cat D offers people chances and opportunities, but it is also a very risky business for individuals.

June 12

A second piece of CCTV was released which showed Gee with a woman pushing a pram. Gee is believed to have met the woman on the hospital station platform between 12.30pm and 1.30pm on the day the first piece of CCTV was released.

The woman, wearing a leopard-print hat, a brown Barbour-style jacket and cream knee-length trousers, appeared to board a train with Gee to Middlesbrough, then board another train together, traveling to Darlington. Once there, the woman could be seen leaving Darlington station pushing her pram, while Gee boarded a 2.16pm train to Liverpool Lime Street. However, investigating officers could not confirm at which stop he got off.

June 15th

Former Scotland Yard detective Peter Bleksley told the ECHO that the lure of home and an established criminal network could be reasons why Gee would return to Merseyside. He told the ECHO: “In terms of staying on the run, a fugitive needs a network. They need someone to feed them, shelter them, clothe them, transport them.

“If you’re on your own, you have to resort to crime to get money and that means you’re more likely to come to the attention of the police. Being a fugitive on your own is practically an impossibility. So many runaways can’t resist the pull of home. There I know they have an established network.

“It is their home territory. Liverpool being a port city also gives criminals the opportunity to flee to more places. He could have returned to Liverpool so his network could then get him out of the country .”

June 20

After Gee boarded a train to Liverpool Lime Street, Merseyside Police confirmed to the ECHO that they were leading the investigation. A spokesman said: “We can confirm that an ongoing inquiry into the whereabouts of Daniel Gee, who escaped from Kirklevington Prison in North Yorkshire, has been transferred to Merseyside Police.

“The 44-year-old man was reported to have run away on Monday 27 May and inquiries are ongoing to locate him. He is described as being around 1.8 meters tall, has a large build and is bald. Gee is believed to have links with Carlisle, St Helens and Liverpool.”

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