Australian fugitive found hiding inside kitchen cupboard

An Iraqi policeman looks inside a kitchen cupboard in the southern city of Amara in Maysan province, 365 kilometres south of Baghdad, on 19 June 2008.Getty Images

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An Australian prisoner who escaped from a New South Wales jail earlier this year has been found hiding in a kitchen cupboard, police say.

The 58-year-old man had been on the run from St Helier's Correctional Centre in Muswellbrook since 24 July.

He was discovered on Sunday inside the kitchen cupboard of a home in Alfords Point, 164 miles (264km) away.

New South Wales police say he has been charged with escaping custody and was due to go to court on Monday.

It was not immediately clear why the man was being held at the correctional centre.

He was first noticed missing in July after a head count and could not be found after a search of the grounds and surrounding area.

The man has not been named by police.