Man escapes 20 minutes into prison term

Police are hunting a burglar who escaped who from a Hawke's Bay court yesterday just 20 minute after being sentenced to nine months in prison.

Angus Dodunski, 19, fled from the holding cells at Waipukurau District Court while awaiting transport to Hawke's Bay Prison, Hawke's Bay Today reported.

Police believe that Dodunski was given a leg up by a fellow prisoner, enabling him to scale a wall and climb through a barbed-wire section of the roof.

A police dog managed to track him for a short distance before losing the scent.

Police warned that Dodunski should not be approached.

- NZPA