Tokyo, Jan 12 (THAINDIAN NEWS) A man sentenced to 23 years in a Japanese prison for attempted murder has escaped in only his underpants. Local news agencies say Li Guolin used a scaffold erected inside the prison wall to scale the fence.

Law enforcement officers are currently on the lookout to track him down. Kyodo news agency reported that Guolin was exercising on Thursday morning when he stripped from his prison wear and escaped only in his underwear. The incident happened at a prison facility in Hiroshima.

This is the first time that a prisoner has escaped from a Japanese jail in more than 20 years. The last time that such an incident happened was in 1990 when a youth escaped from detention.

News agencies throughout Japan are carrying the story because of the rarity of prison break in the country. Some residents in Hiroshima says they are living in fear following the incident. The police have listed 40-year-old Goulin among the most wanted people in the country.

A prison official was quoted by local media as saying that, “We are really sorry.”

Goulin is a Chinese national. He has been in jail since 2005 when he was convicted of attempted murder. He broke into the home and later shot at a law enforcement officer.