Lucknow, Aug 5 - Three police constables were arrested here Wednesday for helping a criminal to escape from police custody, officials said.

Constables Jitendra Yadav, Brijesh Sharma and Devanand were missing for about a month from the Azamgarh district along with a criminal, Pintu Yadav, who was serving a sentence in the Azamgarh district jail.

'The constables were given the task of taking the criminal to the Sanjay Gandhi Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGIMS) Lucknow for a check-up July 6. However, after a few days, we came to know that none of them reached there,' Superintendent of Police Ramit Sharma told IANS over phone.

Following this, Jitendra's mobile phone was put on surveillance and the location of the phone was traced to surprising places.