BURY ST Edmunds MP David Ruffley has written to the Home Secretary expressing his concerns over the murder of a jeweller by a fugitive from a Polish jail.

It follows the EADT revealing that Ireneusz Melaniuk was on the run from the Polish authorities when he managed to get into England, before stabbing 66-year-old Peter Avis 13 times at his home in Bury St Edmunds.

The 66-year-old lived in a flat above the jewellers he owned, Collis & Son in Abbeygate Street.

In addition to stabbing Mr Avis, Melaniuk, who has a number of false identities, also beat him around the head with a glass ash tray during the attack on January 13.

The case has raised issues about why Melaniuk, 28, was not on a ‘watch list’ to prevent him entering the UK.

Vicky Ford, MEP for the East of England, has already pledged to take up the case, along with Ipswich MP Ben Gummer, for tighter controls between EU countries over the cross-border tracking of criminals.

Now Mr Ruffley has also waded in to the issue. In his letter to Theresa May MP, Mr Ruffley wrote: “My constituents are rightly concerned about what safeguards are in place to stop criminals at our borders. To avoid any further heinous crimes committed by foreign nationals I would like to know what steps the UK Border Agency will take to ensure convicted criminals do not enter the UK.”

Melaniuk, a convicted robber, managed to get back into Poland after Mr Avis’ murder, but was eventually caught and extradited back to England. He admitted murder when he appeared before Ipswich Crown Court and is awaiting sentence.