Australian prisoner found in pub drinking beer after escaping from police, swimming river

Escaped Aussie prisoner found drinking beer in pub

BRISBANE, Australia — A prisoner who escaped from police and swam across Australia’s Brisbane River was recaptured nearly seven hours later while downing a beer at a pub, police and hotel employees said Wednesday.

Kayd Thorp, 24, escaped from police Tuesday afternoon at the Brisbane airport, where he had been taken to be extradited to the state of Victoria to face charges there.

Thorp swam across the river and was on the run for more than six hours before police located him that evening in the pub of the Manly Hotel.

Manly Hotel duty manager Chris Jones said police entered the pub and approached two men drinking together.

“They approached a couple sitting at the bar and spoke to a young male and after a few minutes handcuffed him and took him outside,” Jones said in statement read to the Australian Associated Press by hotel staff. “He was apparently the fugitive from the 6 p.m. news who had escaped police custody at the airport.”

Hotel staff had no further comment when contacted by The Associated Press.

Queensland police confirmed Wednesday that a 24-year-old man escaped from police custody Tuesday afternoon and was re-arrested that evening.

He will appear in court Wednesday on a charge of escaping from lawful custody.