Dramatic moment prisoner escapes police prison van

Dramatic footage has emerged of the escape and re-capture of a handcuffed man whose run for freedom forced the lockdown of two southeast Queensland schools

The 29-year-old made his escape from a police prison van at about 8.30am on Wednesday after officers stopped the van while en route from Toowoomba to Brisbane to investigate why he was violently kicking the back door.

When they opened the door, the man took off into nearby bushland, leaving five other prisoners in the back of the van.

The officers tried unsuccessfully to recapture him, calling for backup when he disappeared from sight.

Police locked down two schools and cordoned off a large section in East Toowoomba after receiving calls from members of the public that the man had been spotted in the area.

The dog squad tracked him to a house, with one dog biting him on the hand as he was arrested in the backyard after jumping out of a window.

A woman who was home at the time was not injured.

Police said he had tried to break into a number of cars and houses before he was finally located.

Acting Inspector Jason Hopgood said the man was in custody for property offences, and is expected to be charged on Wednesday with escape from lawful custody.

He said the circumstances surrounding the escape would be investigated.

“We’ll be looking at what took place and what we can do in terms of our procedure to ensure it doesn’t happen again,” he told reporters.