John Anslow fails in appeal against drug-dealing jail term

John Anslow's bid to appeal against his convictions and sentence has been turned down by the Court of Appeal

A drug dealer who was once Britain's most-wanted man after fleeing jail has failed to overturn his convictions.

John Anslow was freed by a gang near HMP Hewell, Redditch, in 2012 after he was charged with murder. He was caught 14 months later in Cyprus.

A jury cleared Anslow of murder, but he is serving 29 years for drug supply and escaping custody.

At London's Criminal Appeal Court, judges refused Anslow's bid to appeal against his convictions and sentence.

Stephen Vullo, QC, representing Anslow, sought leave to appeal against the concurrent sentences of 22 years for supplying cocaine and 12 years for supplying cannabis.

The prison term was handed down in Anslow's absence after he absconded in September 2012.

'Black Country accent'

Mr Vullo told the court there were inaccuracies in the evidence of the scale of his dealing, based on conversations tapped by a covert police device installed at Anslow's home.

He said: "There were significant question marks over the transcripts before the jury, the inferences [by police] were not fair and proper and his Black Country accent is very difficult for us to understand in person, let alone on tape.

"There's lots of unfamiliar slang in use [which Anslow could explain]."

Mr ‎Vullo said this showed he was a lower level dealer than the sentence suggested.

Mr Justice ‎Hickinbottom said the three judges "did not consider that submission had any weight".

The panel refused the drug dealer leave to appeal against his conviction and added it was "simply not arguable that 22 years for cocaine conspiracy and 12 years concurrent for cannabis conspiracy was manifestly excessive."

Anslow, from Tipton, West Midlands, was found not guilty of murdering Richard Deakin in Staffordshire.

David Harrison and Daryl Dickens, from Bilston, West Midlands, were handed life sentences for Mr Deakin's murder in December 2012.