On-the-run mobster likely to appear on TV

If heavily tattooed Mongrel Mob member Mana Tangitutu is not found, he will appear on Police 10-7 tonight.

Hawke's Bay-linked Tangitutu, 27, has the words "East Coast mongrel forever" and three large M's tattooed on his face and has been at large since last Wednesday when he escaped from a holding cell at Whakatane court. Police had executed a number of search warrants and were casting their net wider. The high-profile mobster has links to Hawke's Bay and has been involved in at least two violent crimes here.

In 2003, he was sentenced in the Hawke's Bay courts for his part in an unprovoked attack on a Malaysian tourist, and the same year told a court how he passed a knife to a man on trial for the fatal stabbing of 18-year-old Gavin Arthur outside a Hastings party.

Last week, Tangitutu had just been sentenced to four months in prison for violence against a woman when he slipped out of a holding cell.

A warning had been issued that anyone harbouring Tangitutu would face prosecution. He is described as Maori, about 1.8m tall with distinctive full facial tattoos. Tangitutu is known to carry weapons and should not be approached.

Information can be given anonymously on Crimestoppers 0800 555111 or to Hawke's Bay Police (06) 873 0500.