Murderer who twice escaped from jail faces sentencing

A convicted murderer who went on the run from prison twice in 10 years will be sentenced today.

William Bewley, 49, formerly of Cotehill, near Carlisle, was in possession of a Kimar model self-loading pistol when he was rearrested by police in Kent last June.

The weapon, described as originally being a blank-firing pistol, had been partially bored and was demonstrated to be capable of firing potentially lethal shots.

He admitted having a prohibited gun at Snaresbrook Crown Court in east London yesterday and will appear at the same court today to be sentenced.

Bewley changed his plea before a jury was due to be sworn in for a trial after Judge Louise Kamill ruled he had no defence.

He had earlier pleaded guilty to escaping lawful custody, and will also be sentenced for that crime.

Bewley was jailed for life in 1979 for murdering farmer's wife Ruth "Bunty" Musgrave near Cotehill, Carlisle.

He escaped from Leyhill open prison, Bristol, in March 2001, having been on the run before in the 1990s.

He was finally returned to prison when a series of tip-offs led police to an address in Deal, Kent, where he was caught on June 4 last year.

Bewley was cleared by a jury last December of stabbing his former wife in Barking, Essex, while on the run. The jury in that trial were unaware of his murder conviction.