A County Durham man has pleaded not guilty to a charge of attempted murder after he was accused of stabbing a detective in the chest at a high-security prison.

David Taylor, formerly of Willington, is charged with attempted murder after stabbing an officer during an interview at HMP Frankland in Durham on July 23.

The 62-year-old appeared at Teesside Crown Court via videolink for a preliminary hearing where he denied the charge.

Judge Francis Laird KC heard how Taylor was also facing a trial after he was charged with murder in the Greater Manchester area.

A provisional date for the attempted murder trial remains in place for next February but the expectation is that it will be transferred to Manchester to be heard alongside the murder trial.

Taylor was remanded in custody until his next court appearance.

Alisha Apostoloff-BoyarinAlisha Apostoloff-Boyarin

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In March, it was reported that Taylor, of Oak Avenue, Willington, is suspected of killing 24-year-old Alisha Apostoloff-Boyarin, who disappeared on February 2, 2022.

She was seen eight days earlier, in a gold Volkswagen Passat, being driven through Derbyshire.

Since her disappearance, police have carried out extensive searches for Alisha - who was from Ashton-under-Lyne, in Greater Manchester - in both County Durham and Derbyshire.

Her body has not been found.