Some 600 prisoners are on the run in the southern Iranian city of Bam after their jail crumbled in yesterday's earthquake.
"The prison partly collapsed. Some of the prisoners were killed, others escaped," said Assadollah Iranmanesh, spokesman for a regional emergency committee. "Places particularly prone to looting are secure."
Another official also played down fears the felons would cause trouble. "They are probably busy looking for their families," he said.
An earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale struck before dawn yesterday. Government officials said it killed more than 20,000 people.
The official IRNA news agency said 7,000 policemen had been dispatched to Bam to help out with the aid operation.
The agency quoted a judiciary official as saying 700 prisoners from the jail had been released "on leave".