Rapist escapes from custody

A MAN leapt from the dock of a court and escaped custody just minutes after being convicted of rape, police said yesterday.

Byron Toner, 26, had been found guilty of repeatedly assaulting a 19-year-old woman during a five-hour attack.

His two-week trial at Liverpool Crown Court was told he left his victim with 58 injuries, including a broken jaw.

Toner, of Culme Road, West Derby, Liverpool, was remanded in custody by Judge Adrian Lyon following the guilty verdict on Wednesday afternoon.

But as a security guard stood to escort him to the cells, Toner jumped out of the dock and ran out of the third-floor courtroom.

He then fled the building through a fire escape.