A BRITISH man suspected of killing an entire family in Northamptonshire is thought to have fled to Spain from Morocco where he was sought by UK police.

Spanish and British officers have surrounded the rock of Gibraltar, suspecting 53-year-old Anxiung Du may have obtained a fake Moroccan passport to get back into Spain, where he would be able to lie low among the sizeable Chinese community in the country.

The accused, a British national of Chinese origin, was traced to Tangiers on the north African coast after crossing the Strait of Gibraltar by ferry, after travelling the length of Spain by public transport from Paris, where he fled to after the murder of Jeff and Helen Ding and their daughters aged 12 and 18.

He had been in business with the Ding family, also British-born Chinese, in an oriental medicine clinic.

When commercial relations turned sour leading to court cases and the accused's bank accounts frozen due to his being sued, he is said to have stabbed the couple and their daughters to death in their own home before being smuggled out of the country by friends, who have now been arrested.

Anxiung Du committed the crime on the day of the Royal wedding last year, but his movements have since been traced – although once he hit Tangiers, he disappeared off the radar.

British and Spanish police suspect he may be attempting to get back to Spain, a country he has visited several times on holiday and where he feels 'very comfortable', in the hope of blending in unnoticed among the multi-national expatriate populations on the coasts.

And the British police force is offering a 25,000-pound reward for any information that leads to the fugitive's arrest.

They say he speaks perfect, non-accented English, due to being a British citizen, but also fluent Mandarin Chinese.

The suspect is of average build, around 5'9” (1.75m) tall, sometimes wears glasses and is habitually seen in baseball caps.

Anyone who has any information, however apparently insignificant, is urged to ring 900 555 111 from Spain or 0800 555 111 from the UK, both of which are toll-free, and to call the Spanish police.

They can also contact Crimestoppers via details on their website, www.crimestoppers-uk.org.

Ever since Crimestoppers and the UK serious crime squad launched an appeal to residents in Spain for information, 27 of Britain's 60 most-wanted criminals have been caught and are all currently serving prison sentences.