An alleged international gun runner and gang ringleader - arrested as he tucked into his Christmas dinner - is now back in the UK after extradition.
Daniel Burdett, 28, from Liverpool, was apprehended by National Crime Agency(NCA) officers as he sat down at a restaurant in The Hague, Holland.
His capture was part of an investigation into a group thought to be using corrupt truck drivers to smuggle firearms and ammunition from the Netherlands into the UK.
Burdett was extradited to Britain last week, it has now emerged.
He appeared before magistrates in Manchester on Thursday, just before the UK Covid-19 lockdown had hit.
He will next appear at Manchester Crown Court this Thursday.
Burdett, who is also wanted by Merseyside Police for drug offences, is facing 10 charges of conspiracy to import firearms and conspiracy to supply class A and B drugs.
He has spent five years on the run and was subject to a European Arrest Warrant.
He has links to the Vauxhall area of the city.
NCA branch commander Mark Spoors said: “Those on the run from UK law enforcement should know that we are determined to track down fugitives, and that international borders are not a barrier to us doing so.”
One man has already been jailed for eight years in connection with the NCA investigation and another is currently awaiting trial.
The 28-year-old has appeared in the ECHO in previous years as part of our festive fugitive campaign as police tried to track him down.
After his arrest three months ago, the NCA said: “Thanks to the coordinated response by the Dutch police and Merseyside Police, Burdett is now facing extradition to the UK.
"The public can be assured that the NCA is relentlessly pursuing those suspected of causing the most harm to the UK – even on Christmas Day.”
