Police recapture convicted murderer

A convicted murderer on the loose after walking away from a central North Island prison has been picked up walking along State Highway 1, say police.

Christopher Thomas Watkins was captured at about 10.40pm yesterday by Turangi police. They approached him when he was walking along SH1, about 3km south of Turangi, and taken into custody, said Inspector Lou Alofa, northern communications duty operations commander.

"Mr Watkins when apprehended, succumbed to police without resistance," he said.

Watkins was serving a life sentence at the low security Tongariro Rangipo Prison for a 1988 murder. He had been working at the prison when he walked away about 12.15pm yesterday.

Staff at the prison's south unit noticed he was missing about 1pm .