Justice Minister Naomi Long has said that the family of murder victim Karol Kelly will be central to a review into the temporary release of one of his killers.

Gary Anderson was serving a life sentence for the murder of Mr Kelly in Derry. On 21 September, he absconded while on compassionate temporary release to attend a funeral. He was later apprehended by An Garda Síochána in Fahan, County Donegal.

The Justice Minister met the Kelly family in Derry last week. Speaking in the Assembly on Monday, she said the meeting helped her understand the trauma that has been caused, particularly to Mr Kelly's youngest children, who had to have the circumstances of his death explained to them.

Mrs Long said the family had also lived with online provocation since the murder, and that the matter had reawakened anger and hurt. She said their input will be vital to the review, and that she has made arrangements for the terms of reference to include contact with the Kelly family.

She also said that before announcing the review arrangements to the Assembly, she will notify the family, and that she will meet them again before any recommendations are reported.

Mrs Long confirmed that the PSNI are maintaining regular contact with the Kelly family. She thanked Foyle MLA Mark H. Durkan for facilitating the meeting with herself and the director general of the Prison Service.

The minister provided further details about Anderson's temporary release. She said that after being presented at Bishop Street Courthouse on 21 September, the conditions of his release were read to him by Prison Service staff, and he was passed to a court-appointed chaperone.

At 11.20am, the PSNI was contacted by the chaperone, who stated that Gary Anderson had absconded and would not be returning to prison. The PSNI then alerted the public and devoted additional resources to securing his return. Mrs Long said there was no suggestion that the chaperone did anything inappropriate.

Mrs Long was also asked about how Sean Anderson, Gary Anderson's brother and co-defendant, managed to access a mobile phone in Magilligan prison. She said an intelligence-led operation secured the phone last Tuesday and placed it in police custody. The police are investigating how it got into the prison and how information was posted on TikTok.

She said the phone is now in police hands and that adjudication arrangements for Sean Anderson have been put in place in the prison system.