Mumbai: The 23-year-old accused, who was arrested on charges of molestation under Juhu police, escaped from police custody while being taken to the Santacruz police lockup after being produced in Andheri court on Saturday.

An officer said that the accused pretended to be ill. When the police vehicle stopped near Juhu Residency Hotel, he jumped out of the van. However, after a chase of about 30 minutes, he was caught near the Pawan Hans Airport premises.

According to the police, the accused, named Saif Khan, got down from the police van on the pretext of illness and vomiting while being taken to the lockup and ran away when he saw an opportunity. In the process, he climbed an eight-foot-high brick wall of the airport, which had 1.5 feet of barbed wire and concertina coil installed on top.

However, the police did not give up and chased him by jumping over the same wall he had climbed and arrested him. The incident took place at 3:30 pm on March 15.

A molestation case was registered against Saif at Juhu Police Station on Friday, and he was remanded to two days of police custody. The escape attempt occurred during his court appearance related to the case on Saturday.