February 17, 2022 9.01 am This story is over 25 months old

Prison absconder Paul Robson has inch-long scar on his eyebrow

Police have released a new description of the absconder

Paul Robson, 56, had been missing since Sunday, having absconded from MHP North Sea Camp. | Photo: Lincolnshire Police

Lincolnshire Police have released a new description of dangerous sex offender Paul Robson who is on the run for a fifth day.

Robson, 56, was first reported missing from HMP North Sea Camp in the early hours of Sunday, February 13. He had only been moved into the category D open prison on January 21 and now a national manhunt is underway for the convicted sex offender.

Police have now shared further descriptions of Robson to help identify him, warning that people should try not to approach or apprehend him. He is described as being 5’8″ tall and speaks with a North East accent, and is believed to habitually wear a baseball cap.

He has an inch-long scar on the right side of his eyebrow. He also has a tattoo on his left hand of a cross, believed to be self-made, with a blue crucifix between the thumb and forefinger.

Robson was serving a life sentence given to him in 2000 for attempted rape and indecent assault of a woman in Oxford, when he broke into the 23-year-old victim’s house via a cat flap, before tying her up, putting a pillow case over her head and sexual assaulting her at knife point.

He had only been released from prison on licence for three weeks before the terrifying attack, and during his sentencing at Oxford Crown Court, the judge called him a “menace to females” and said he should not be released until he poses no danger or is “enfeebled by age”.

Robson was moved to the open prison after having five parole requests rejected, the last of which prompted a decision by the Parole Board to recommend his move into open conditions.

The 56-year-old is the second person to abscond from HMP North Sea Camp so far in 2022, with the first being recaptured soon after his evasion in January. The Ministry of Justice has provided data that shows over 100 prisoners have absconded from the open prison in Freiston, Boston in the last decade.

His absconding has become a national news story, with politicians and nearby residents alike criticising the decision to put Robson in an open prison in the first place, given his history of serious crime.

MP for Boston and Skegness Matt Warman, whose constituency covers North Sea Camp, called it a “system failure” at the hands of the parole board, and said it is something that must be fixed “urgently”.

Anyone who has seen Robson or has any information that can assist police with their enquiries should call the force immediately on 101 or 999.

Coverage of prison absconder Paul Robson so far: