Handcuffed escapees collared by lamp post

You might have thought that having evaded the courthouse guards and made it out of the building, the hard part would be over. However, two New Zealand prisoners – who made an escape attempt while handcuffed to each other – had not reckoned on a lone lamp post.

As Regan Reti, 20, and Tiranara White, 21, sprinted to freedom, they managed to run on opposite sides of the post, promptly crashing into each other and falling to the floor.

The duo made their break earlier this week as they were being taken from their cell to a courthouse in Hastings. "They fell over and were sprayed with pepper spray. But they got up and ran out of the court on to the street, across the road to a car park," police spokesman Dave Greig told the Associated Press. "That's where they met the pole – it was all over, rover."

Reti, who had just been given a sentence of more than two years for assault, pleaded guilty to escaping from custody and had a month added to his sentence. White, who was in custody for allegedly stealing a car and violating parole, did not enter a plea and is awaiting a psychiatric evaluation.

The whole escapade was caught on CCTV and has been released to the public. New Zealand's TV One News labelled the video "one of the worst escape attempts ever seen".