A NORTH Yorkshire drug trafficker who escaped from prison has been arrested in Spain.

Daniel Dobbs, 31, of Malton, was jailed for 13 and a half years in January 2014 for conspiring to supply heroin and amphetamines.

But while he was serving his sentence at HMP Hatfield Lakes open prison in South Yorkshire, he walked out and went missing.

Now he is back behind bars, this time in Spain and is facing extradition back to the UK.

Alison Abbott, of the National Crime Agency's (NCA) offender lifetime management unit, said: “Dobbs’s arrest is a fantastic result and shows the power of our international partnerships.

“British fugitives should know that we will catch up with them no matter where they are.”

The NCA, which originally brought him to justice, launched an international search for him after he absconded from the Yorkshire jail.

Agency officers found him living under a false name in Spain and have been working with the Spanish authorities to have him extradited back to the UK.

He was arrested in a Guardia Civil investigation into an underground tobacco factory in Malaga, southern Spain.

In January 2014, Leeds Crown Court heard how Dobbs was part of a gang that ran a amphetamine factory in Doncaster where police found nearly £2 million of the drug, plus enough chemical to produce another £2.3 million of the drug.

He was seen with a fellow gang member who had 9.4kg of heroin with a potential street value of £847,000 when police caught him after a chase.

He was convicted of conspiracy to supply heroin by a jury and admitted conspiracy to supply amphetamine.

The National Crime Agency said Dobbs will not return to the UK until the Spanish court case involving him is concluded.