China's Ministry of Public Security has issued a warrant for the arrest of a 32-year-old man in eastern Jiangxi Province who escaped from a county jail with seven others three weeks ago.

The fugitive, Ma Zhiqiang, was among eight prisoners who broke out of jail in Xingguo county in the early hours on October 30. The other seven have already been caught by police, the ministry said.

Three of the jail-breakers were found the same day and another three were nabbed a day later. The seventh was arrested at a shoe factory in Guangdong on November 7.

The ministry did not reveal details of how the prisoners managed to escape but media reports said the eight criminal suspects attacked a warden, took his keys and then fooled the guards by pretending to carry out assigned work outside the detention center.

China News Service quoted sources with the police as saying that the warden of the county jail had been sacked.

The news agency's report said the case had drawn serious concern from the public security authorities as it was "very rare" in China to have such a large number of escapees.

Ma was arrested at the end of last year for stealing and selling equipment and materials from large transformer substations. He has been held in jail ever since awaiting trial.

Police said Ma was 165 centimeters tall and had tattoos on the back of his left hand and wrist. A reward of 10,000 yuan (1,350 U.S. dollars) has been offered for information leading to his arrest.

(Xinhua News Agency November 21, 2007)