A DRUG trafficker who escaped from prison and fled to Spain is today serving more than 15 years in an English jail.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) tracked down Daniel Dobbs, 31, of Malton, to his hiding place in Malaga where he was living under a false name, and had him extradited back to the UK in March this year.

He had been on the run for more than a year since absconding from his South Yorkshire prison cell.

When he appeared before an English court this month, he was given two years for escape from custody to be served after he finishes the 13 and a half year sentence he got in 2014 for conspiracy to supply heroin and amphetamine.

He was also given a 12-month concurrent sentence for misuse of an ID document at Lewes Crown Court.

Alison Abbott, of the NCA’s offender lifetime management unit, said: “It is apparent that Dobbs is a harmful and persistent offender who thought he could escape the UK and avoid detection.

“But together with international partners, we tracked him down, and now he’s back behind bars where he belongs.

“The NCA pursues fugitives relentlessly. No matter where they are, nor how long it takes, we will catch up with those who flee UK justice.”

An international hunt was launched after Dobbs, formerly of Malton, was missing from his cell on November 2, 2018.

In 2019, NCA discovered his location and contacted the Spanish authorities.

Dobbs was arrested by Guardia Civil as part of its investigation into an underground counterfeit cigarette factory in Malaga, southern Spain, in February this year. Officers seized over three million counterfeit cigarettes; 20kg of hashish; 144kg of marijuana; three weapons; eight GPS tracking devices and a jamming device.