A notorious drug gang boss has absconded from prison, the Ministry of Justice has confirmed.

Daniel Gee, now aged 44, turned Merseyside into 'Hell's Kitchen' and was jailed indefinitely in 2010.

He was a leading figure in the gang that turned the Grizedale estate in Everton, Liverpool, into a hub for illegal drugs.

Now, the police and Prison Service are trying to hunt down the criminal who managed to escape a Category D prison.

Gee was jailed 14 years ago after an investigation found that he had conspired to purchase weapons and had threatened to kill a teenager.

He made the threats to Jamie Starkey - a 16-year-old gunman who shot him on New Year's Day in 2008.

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At the time, Judge Henry Globe QC explained why Gee was sentenced to a long stint in prison: "I am in no doubt that the public must be protected from you in the future.

"I really do not know when it will be safe to release you."

Gee was ordered to serve a minimum of four years in prison having been sentenced to seven and a half.

After his escape, a Prison Service spokesperson said: "All prisoners in Category D prisons are robustly risk-assessed and absconds are rare. Offenders who break the rules are punished and face extra time behind bars and we are working with the police to recapture this prisoner."

An abscond is when someone escapes from prison without having to encounter any physical security restraint.

The Prison and Probation Service says Category D prisons have minimal security and allow eligible prisoners to spend time away from the prison doing work, taking part in educational courses or other activities.

Gee was also found guilty of two counts of threats to kill and another two of blackmail back in 2009.

Jurors did not reach a unanimous decision on more serious charges of conspiracy to murder and conspiracy to possess firearms and ammunition.

Before his second trial started, Gee admitted the second charge.

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