Police in Opotiki are searching for a man who has escaped from the Opotiki District Court.
Joel John Graham, 21, escaped around 10am today. He is Maori, 177cm tall, of thin build with short black hair and a black goatee beard. He has extensive tattooing on his back.
When he escaped Graham stripped off his prison-issued clothing and was last seen in the Bridge St area wearing only shorts.
Graham is currently facing a variety of domestic violence related charges, police said.
Police have set up cordons and a police dog is being used in the search.