The landowner gunned down planning officer Harry Collinson in 1991 as BBC Look North cameras filmed a story about the demolition of his bungalow
THE brother of a council planning officer shot dead on TV by a landowner has slammed his release, saying: "I hope he dies slowly".
Albert Dryden gunned down Harry Collinson in 1991 as journalists gathered to see his home - which he built without planning permission - demolished.
The murder was filmed by a BBC Look North cameraman and Dryden was later jailed for life for it, as well as the attempted murder of council solicitor Michael Dunstan in Butsfield, County Durham.
Dryden, now 76, suffered a stroke behind bars which has left him unable to talk.
He will be released from prison to live out his days in a nursing home.
Mr Collinson's older brother, Roy, who was told of the killer's release by Victim Support, slammed the move.
Roy : "Personally, I couldn’t bloody care less what happens to Albert Dryden.
"If he dies slowly that’s good. I’ll be very happy about that.
"He never showed one bit of remorse in all the 26 years he has been in prison.
"He still tried to justify his actions for some God-unknown reason."
He added: "If the police had done their job properly, my brother wouldn't have been killed and Albert Dryden wouldn't have spent all this time in prison."
Derwentside County Council moved in to demolish the bungalow on June 20, 1991, and were accompanied by staff and a number of TV and newspaper reporters.
Mr Collinson, 46, was shot dead, and Mr Dunstan was seriously injured. PC Stephen Campbell was shot in the buttock and Look North reporter Tony Belmont was blasted in the arm.
Chilling footage filmed by the news crew shows Mr Collinson asking the camera crew to take a shot of Dryden's gun.
As the camera pans to Dryden, he fires the weapon.
Roy Collinson has always insisted the tragedy could have been avoided.
He claims it was well-known Dryden had multiple weapons and ammunition but police failed to spot the warning signs.
