The family of a popular young Irish woman murdered in Cabo Roig more than 17 years ago have spoken of their anguish and alarm as the man who stabbed her more than 50 times is released from prison.
Alan Daulby, from Liverpool, was sentenced to 19 years for the savage murder of his former girlfriend, 20-year-old Avril Flanagan, at his Orihuela Costa apartment on May 29, 2009.
Daulby, who recently turned 40, was expected to leave a UK prison on Sunday, although sources indicated that his release may already have taken place.
For Avril’s devastated family, it is a moment they have feared for years. While Daulby can now contemplate the rest of his life outside prison, Avril was denied the opportunity even to celebrate her 21st birthday.
Her Dublin-based brother, David, said the family remained convinced that Daulby still posed a danger to the public and should never have been allowed to walk free.
“Daulby should have been caged for life,” he said.
“Avril was taken from us when she was just 20 and this monster has not long ago turned 40, so he’s got the rest of his life ahead of him.
“He was deemed high risk when he was in jail where he has been held as a Category A prisoner.
“I firmly believe he’s still a danger to society, and that’s a view I think the prison authorities share.”
David said Avril’s relatives felt powerless to prevent the release because Daulby had served the custodial period required under his sentence, handed down by Spanish courts, including time spent on remand before his conviction.
Once free, he is expected to be placed under police supervision and made subject to a Stalking Protection Order. The family understands that a police officer will be assigned to him and that he will initially be accommodated in Guildford, Surrey.
He is also reportedly being prevented from travelling to Spain, although the restriction will not stop him from entering Ireland.
Of particular concern to Avril’s relatives are claims that Daulby may be able to leave the accommodation provided for his first 12 weeks and disengage from elements of the supervision arrangements.
“We’ve been told he can drop out of the supervision plan at any time if he wants and leave the housing he’s been offered for the first 12 weeks,” David said. “That makes us very concerned.”
A young life stolen
Avril, originally from Swords in County Dublin, moved to Spain in 2006 and worked as a barmaid at the Orihuela Costa pub opened by her parents.
She had ended her year-long relationship with Daulby approximately two weeks before he murdered her.
His trial heard that Daulby stalked Avril following the break-up and repeatedly telephoned her. Desperate to escape his unwanted attention, she eventually broke her phone’s SIM card to stop the calls.
On May 29, 2009, Daulby attacked Avril with a kitchen knife inside his apartment, stabbing her more than 50 times.
Judges in Elche described the killing as “brutal and barbaric” and concluded that Daulby had taken pleasure in causing his defenceless victim additional suffering.
His actions after the murder revealed a chilling attempt to conceal what he had done.
Daulby used a mop and bleach to clean Avril’s blood from the apartment before showering and changing his clothes. He then wrapped her body in blankets and plastic sheeting and concealed it beneath a sofa.
Avril’s mother, Barbara, was later confronted with the unimaginable horror of discovering her daughter’s body.
Daulby fled the property in his car which was eventually spotted by the Guardia Civil north of Benidorm, triggering a pursuit covering almost 200 kilometres. He was eventually intercepted and arrested by armed police several hours after the murder.
For more than three years, he refused to admit responsibility for Avril’s death. He finally confessed during his June 2012 trial, but claimed that after bingeing on alcohol and drugs he had mistaken her for an intruder.
He also said he had panicked after waking to discover her dead.
The court rejected his version of events and sentenced him to 19 years in prison – one year short of the maximum available sentence.
Family kept in the dark
Daulby was initially imprisoned in Spain but was later transferred to a UK jail without the knowledge of Avril’s family.
Mother Barbara discovered the transfer only through a friend in March 2019, compounding the suffering of a family that had already endured the violent loss of a daughter and sister.
Despite strenuous objections from Avril’s relatives, Daulby was briefly released in October 2020. He was returned to prison less than two months later after breaching his licence conditions.
Subsequent attempts to secure his further release were rejected, providing the family with only temporary relief from the prospect they had long dreaded.
They suffered another painful shock in 2022 when they unexpectedly discovered footage showing Daulby joking and performing for other inmates inside an unidentified UK prison.
The video showed him holding a mug of tea and wearing grey tracksuit bottoms pulled up to his knees. Sporting an unkempt beard, he appeared to mimic Arabic speech and pretend to fire an imaginary gun.
The footage contained the first publicly seen images of Daulby since he had been photographed being taken to court almost 15 years earlier. For Avril’s grieving relatives, seeing him clowning around in prison added further distress to an ordeal that had already lasted more than a decade.
Now, following previous failed attempts to secure his freedom, Daulby is finally being released.
For Avril’s family, however, there can be no release from the grief he inflicted upon them. No supervision order or travel restriction can restore the life that was taken or erase the horror of the way she died.
Avril was only 20 when her future was stolen. She lost the chance to pursue her ambitions, build a career, fall in love again or raise a family of her own.
Daulby, meanwhile, has reached the age of 40 and is now being permitted to rebuild his life outside prison—a freedom he brutally and permanently denied to Avril.
