A prisoner lost some 14 kg (30 lbs) so he could squeeze through a hole he chiselled in a brick wall and escape from a maximum security jail in Sydney.
Robert Cole, 36, who was serving time for stealing and assault, was being treated in the Long Bay prison hospital when he broke out of jail on Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning.
Cole weighed about 70kg (167 pounds) when he entered prison in February 2003 but had dieted to 56kg at his latest weigh-in, local media reported.
New South Wales state Corrective Services deputy commissioner Ian McLean told reporters it appeared Cole had deliberately lost weight so he could slip through the crack in the wall.
"It certainly looks like it to me," McLean said on Wednesday.
After squeezing through a small hole next to a window in the hospital wall, Cole scaled a wire fence crowned with razor wire and then walked along a prison wall, before jumping to freedom.
There were no guards on the prison wall overnight, as jail authorities relied on surveillance cameras and sensor detectors to stop night jailbreaks. Long Bay's security manager has been stood down pending an investigation, said McLean.
{{/usCountry}}There were no guards on the prison wall overnight, as jail authorities relied on surveillance cameras and sensor detectors to stop night jailbreaks. Long Bay's security manager has been stood down pending an investigation, said McLean.
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