A WOMAN who went on the run when recalled to continue serving her sentence for city centre violence has been returned to jail.

Rachel Marie Nelson, 40, had been released in August partway through a sentence of nearly four years.

But her behaviour after she regained her freedom prompted the Parole Board to order her return to prison. She failed to obey the order and disappeared.

Last month, police asked the public to help them locate her after their own efforts failed to find her.

She was arrested and appeared before York Magistrates Court via a video link.

She was ordered to serve one day's detention after admitting failure to respond to a recall order.

She is now back in prison and continuing to serve the sentence she received in April 2018.

Nelson was one of three members of the same family who were jailed at York Crown Court for pulling a man out of a taxi and targeting his head in what Judge Andrew Stubbs QC described as “sickening violence”.

He saw CCTV of the incident on Tanners' Moat.

Afterwards, he told York Crown Court he had lost count of the number of times the three defendants had kicked the victim.

The incident had begun when door staff had broken up a fight between the victim and another of the defendants outside the Salt and Pepper takeaway on Tanner's Row.

The cause of the fight was unknown, the court heard.

The three defendants had chased the victim down Rougier Street and he had taken refuge in the taxi.

But they had dragged him out of it and onto the ground, and punched and kicked him.

Passers-by on Lendal Bridge had seen what they were doing and berated the defendants.

The three tried to justify their actions before leaving, the court heard.

Each defendant was jailed for 45 months for attempted grievous bodily harm with intent. Rachel Nelson was given an extra month because she failed to attend the original sentencing hearing.

She was sentenced a week later when she admitted failure to attend court. All three admitted attempted grievous bodily harm with intent.