A NEWPORT man who helped a'dangerous criminal' escape custody was jailed for eight months yesterday.

Ian Muir, 39 of Marshfield Street, Newport, pleaded guilty to assisting an offender when he appeared at Cardiff crown court.

The court heard Muir was seen driving escaped criminal Martin Tuft through Newport on May 7.

Tuft, 45, of Cambridge Road, Newport, escaped from Newport magistrates' court along with Graham Woodward, 26 of Russell Drive, Malpas, on April 27 during a preliminary hearing for robbery.

Tuft was later jailed for six years while co-defendents Woodward and Stephen Swart, 37 of Bedford Road, Maindee, who all pleaded guilty to robbing Jonathan Cromwell of a gold bracelet, wallet and cash, each received five years.

Andrew McGee, 22, drove Martin Tuft away as he fled from the building. Tuft was later jailed for three years.

The escape prompted custody cases to be moved away from Newport magistrates in a major security review.

Richard Jones, prosecuting, said Muir was seen by police driving a Peugeot 309 through Somerton on May 7, with a man crouched in the back seat.

Police identified the man as Tuft and pursued the car but Muir accelerated and escaped.

He was later seen by the car in Somerton Road and arrested by police.

Mr Jones said Tuft, Muir's common law father-in law, called Muir on his mobile phone and asked him to pick him up.

Andrew Davies, defending, said: "The defendent was in fear of Tuft and once there was a police chase drove at Tuft's direction. This was a man Mr Muir was very much afraid of.

"He knows he has behaved foolishly and is ashamed of that."

The court heard that Muir had previous convictions, including fines for criminal damage and a four-year sentence for robbery, burglary and theft in 1991.

Sentencing Muir, Judge William Gaskell said: "If anyone knows how serious Martin Tuft's offences are then you did, having served four years for the offence of robbery.