A search was underway for 15 prisoners who escaped from police jail in Cavite province south of Manila, police said on Saturday.

Cavite Provincial Police Director Supt. William Segun said that eight of the 23 escapees have been recaptured and returned to the Bacoor City Custodial Center.

The 23 inmates, detained for illegal drug-related charges, escaped on Friday from a jail in Bacoor City while a jail guard was taking a mug shot of a new prisoner.

Segun said the detainees saw an opportunity to escape when the jail guard opened the cell. "They took advantage of it," he said, adding that the prisoners rushed out of the opened cell gate.

Segun said several checkpoints have been set up in the province to recapture the convicts. Already, he said villages in the province and nearby provinces have been alerted.