Gary Anderson, who is serving a 15-year sentence for the murder of Karol Kelly, remains on the run

The office for Northern Ireland's top judge has explained a court's decision to grant convicted killer Gary Anderson temporary release to attend his father's funeral, despite opposition from prison authorities.

Anderson, 29, who is one of two brothers jailed for life for the murder of Karol Kelly in Londonderry in 2018, failed to return to Maghaberry prison on Monday.

The prison service had refused to grant Anderson compassionate temporary release (CTR) to attend the funeral, but that was overturned by a court on Sunday.

The Office of the Lady Chief Justice (LCJ) said the court had held the governor's decision not to grant CTR was "not substantiated by the evidence provided to the court".

Karol Kelly died after being stabbed in the Grafton Street area of Derry in 2018

The Northern Ireland Courts Service (NICS) confirmed that the judge who took the decision was Mr Justice Rooney.

"This was an individual judicial decision, and it is not appropriate for this office to make any further comment," the Office of LCJ said.

Anderson's brother Sean, who is serving 17 years for the murder of Karol Kelly, also challenged the decision not to release him from Magilligan Prison to attend the funeral, but that was upheld.

"The application was brought on the grounds that the decisions breached the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) rights of the applicants," the Office of the LCJ said.

"The court found that the decision by the governor in respect of Sean Anderson was carried out lawfully and refused the application for leave to challenge the decision."

Gary Anderson was released from Maghaberry prison on Monday morning to attend his father's funeral

Anderson was released from Maghaberry Prison on Monday to attend his father's funeral, but absconded from his court-approved chaperone.

The funeral took place at St Mary's Church in the Creggan area of Derry on Monday morning followed by cremation in Letterkenny, County Donegal, that afternoon.

The conditions of his release, as follows, have been confirmed to BBC News NI:

The applicant will be released from Maghaberry prison and brought to Derry courthouse by 09:30 BST to return at 11:30 BST

The applicant is to be collected by (named person) by car and remain with him throughout

He is to attend only the funeral of his father at St Mary's Church and must stay within confines of the church

Applicant's representatives must contact the Judicial Review Office to advise all went to plan

The applicant must not consume alcohol, non-prescribed medication or use any electronic equipment

The applicant is to return to prison directly from the Derry courthouse

Justice Minister Naomi Long said the matter was not about apportioning blame and that lessons had to be learned from the episode

Speaking on Wednesday, Justice Minister Naomi Long said she believed the prison service had reached "the right conclusion" in relation to Anderson's release.

"They have the experience of doing these assessments on an ongoing basis. They felt it wasn't safe on this occasion for him to be released," Long said.

"But he has rights. He was able to exercise those rights in the court and a judge with that information reached a different conclusion."

That, the minster said, is "part of the process" and "entirely legitimate".

Long said the majority of prisoners on short term release return to custody as required.

"This is an unusual situation that we find ourselves in but it is a deeply concerning one," she said.

"It is not about apportioning blame, it is about trying to find out how we ensure this doesn't happen again but also how we get this person back into custody."

The minister, who urged Anderson to hand himself over to police, said he is "a threat to the public and he is potentially also at risk."

DUP MLA Trevor Clarke says there is "clear evidence" that there was an issue in this case

However, the DUP MLA Trevor Clarke, who sits on the policing board, said the whole process needed looked at.

"I think there's clear evidence that there was an issue in this case and that's now been borne out because this person hasn't come back," he told BBC Radio Foyle's North West Today programme.

"All of the things that the courts have involved themselves in this one, I think, has been wrong.

"A chaperone as opposed to a proper prison guard, this is an individual who cannot even handcuff the person while they're chaperoned, so all of the safeguards that could have been put in place weren't put in place."

Sinn Féin MLA Linda Dillon, who also sits on the policing board, said the decision was down to the individual judge, but it is possible that the prison service had not provided them with sufficient information.

"If the prison service did not give all of the information that allowed them to come to the correct decision... then that is something that has gone wrong within the prison service," she told BBC Radio Ulster's Evening Extra programme.

Dillon added that questions need to be asked regarding why "the court allowed the prisoner to go with a chaperone who was a lay-person rather than prison officers".

On Wednesday, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) confirmed that Anderson was last seen in the Eastway area of Creggan in Derry.

They also confirmed that they were liaising with An Garda Síochána (Irish police).

Prison Service opposed release of murderer who absconded