Officers from Grampian Police arrested the 45-year old convicted heroin dealer — who was sentenced to eight years imprisonment in 2005 — a little over an hour after he was reported missing.

Masson will now appear before a sheriff at Perth.

He is the latest in a long line of high-profile absconders from the Longforgan jail in recent years, raising questions about the security regime at the open estate.

Just last month, violent criminal Peter Duff, who was serving nine years for assault, armed robbery and firearms offences, went on the run from the jail before being apprehended by police a few days later.

Brian “Hawk” Martin, who was serving 10 years for gun offences, also fled from the jail last year before handing himself in a week later.

Murderer John Brown absconded from the jail in May last year and was found dead in the Gambia, seven months later.

Sex offender Robert Foye absconded from Castle Huntly in 2007 after being let out to attend an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting.

He raped a girl before being recaptured.

The latest escape has again prompted outrage and concern about the open prison regime, with many calling for answers from Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill and the Scottish Government.

Bill Aitken, the Conservatives’ justice spokesman, who has previously criticised the Castle Huntly system, said, “And still it goes on.

“One almost feels at Castle Huntly that there should be a board with prisoners names and an ‘in’ and ‘out’ box beside them, just like in many offices.

“It is ‘soft touch Scotland’ personified.”

North East MSP and Labour justice spokesman Richard Baker said, “I very much welcome the fact that Grampian Police have apprehended this offender, which will be a relief to the local community.

“I hope the court will take a dim view about this convicted drug dealer absconding.

“There remain important questions over the current operation of the open estate.”

He added, “In light of a succession of dangerous absconds from the open estate, a comprehensive report on how to improve security measures was compiled by Professor Alec Spencer.

“It is regrettable that Kenny MacAskill has still failed to implement that report fully to deliver the improvements we need to see in the open estate to ensure the safety of our communities.”

A spokesman for the Scottish Government said rules around the open prison estate had been tightened.

“The process for transferring prisoners to open conditions was tightened significantly as a result of the measures the justice secretary instigated after the Robert Foye and Martin cases,” he said.

“We have already seen a substantial reduction in the number of absconds from the open estate — from 79 in 2006/07 to 16 in 2008/09 — and nine from the open estate at this stage (excluding Masson) in 2009/10. These are record low figures.”

A spokesman for the Scottish Prison Service said the prisoner had been located by police just over an hour after he was reported missing.

The service also confirmed that Masson had been on home leave before, during his time at Castle Huntly, and had returned.