A notorious career thief who was once France's most-wanted man pulled off a daring jailbreak yesterday, fleeing a prison in the Paris area by helicopter, officials said.

Redoine Faid, 46, broke out of the prison in Reau in the city's southeastern suburbs within minutes, helped by a number of heavily-armed men, sources close to the case said. He fled with three accomplices, according to the sources. The helicopter was later found in a northeastern suburb of the French capital, they said, adding that a police search has been launched across the entire Paris region.