Detectives hunting Britain's most-wanted fugitive have appealed to his family and friends in Hunan province for help in tracking down the man wanted for the brutal murder of a family of four.
More than two months after university lecturer Jifeng Ding, 46, and his family were hacked to death at their home in England, the suspect Anxiang Du, 52 is now believed to have fled Britain.
The appeal comes as more details of the links between the two families emerge. Police sources said relatives of the murdered family were 'living in fear' of the suspect and officers would not rest until he was caught.
Since the April 29 killings at the Ding family's luxury home in an upmarket village near Northampton, the trail has gone cold, with only unsubstantiated sightings of the wanted man. Now, officers have asked for people in Du's native province of Hunan to be vigilant and share any information that may have made its way back to China.
'Du is a nationalised British citizen and holds a British passport - his Chinese passport is expired,' a police source said. 'But given the fact he is wanted for such a horrific crime, he may have felt safe in going home.
'He is considered very dangerous and should not be approached. But the question we have to ask is, has Anxiang Du gone home to China? And are there any rumours of where he might be circulating in his home province?'
Hours before the slayings, Du wrote an apparent suicide note, but he was carrying clothes and money when he disappeared.