Two Islamist extremists sentenced to death for their role in the murder of a publisher escaped from a Bangladesh court Sunday after their guards were subdued with a chemical spray, police said.

The two men were among eight members of the outlawed Ansar al Islam group sentenced last year for the 2015 killing of Faisal Arefin Dipan, who was targeted for publishing the works of a prominent atheist writer.

“When the officers were bringing out the convicts, two motorbike riders came in and blinded officers by spraying their faces,” police detective branch chief Harunur Rashid told reporters.

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan ordered a nationwide manhunt for the escapees and pledged a bounty of two million taka ($19,500) for any information leading to their arrest.