250-Pound NYC Prisoner Recaptured After Escaping Custody Using Rope Made of Towels

The prisoner who escaped police custody in New York City by climbing out of a fifth-floor hospital window with a rope fashioned from towels has been recaptured.

Yenchun Chen, 44, was apprehended once again in New Jersey, local outlet WABC reported Thursday afternoon, less than a day after the daring breakout from Manhattan’s Mount Sinai Beth Israel hospital.

Further details about Chen’s latest arrest, as well as any additional charges he may face, were not immediately known.

Chen was initially arrested on July 31 on charges including criminal possession and criminal sale of a controlled substance, online court records show. He has pleaded not guilty.

While Chen was being held in lieu of bail, corrections officers reportedly brought him to the hospital on Friday for a cardiac issue.

On Wednesday, Chen asked for several towels to take a shower, authorities told WABC.

When officers later went to check on Chen, they found the window open and the prisoner nowhere in sight, according to the outlet.

Investigators quickly determined that Chen — who’s described as 6-foot-3 and 250 pounds — climbed out of the fifth-floor window and descended onto the top of an air conditioning unit on the second floor, according to authorities and the report.

Chen then allegedly used a ladder to get to street level and fled the area via a yellow taxi.

An internal review into Chen’s escape was underway Thursday, WABC reported.