A man serving time for minor offences escaped from a courthouse in Sicily on Friday.
The man had been taken to the courthouse in Trapani for a hearing from his cell in a prison in Agrigento, they said.
A manhunt has been launched and roadblocks set up in and around Trapani.
The man was named as Francesco Adragna, 37, from Erice.
He managed to slip out of the custody of prison officers during the hearing.
He has a record for robbery, theft and evading house arrest, sources said.