A prisoner who was brought to Limerick Regional Hospital for an operation he was due to have yesterday morning escaped from the hospital on Hallowe'en night.
The prison authorities had bought him lime green pyjamas for the operation but when they rang gardai and told them the prisoner was on the run in the pyjamas, the gardai thought it was a prank.
The man was brought to the hospital at 4.30 p.m. and was missing two hours later. A spokesman at Limerick Prison said the man was allowed out on temporary release for the operation and was not in custody at the time he was in hospital. "He is doing 14 months and it is a little embarrassing that he escaped like this," he said.