PRISON ESCAPEE

Dominion, Volume 30, Issue 157, 31 March 1937, Page 12

PRISON ESCAPEE

Midnight Capture By Petone Constable

THREE CHARGES PREFERRED A good piece of work by the police at Petone led to the recapture about midnight on Monday of Cyril Christian Hayes, labourer, aged 21, who escaped from Mt. Crawford prison about 4 o’clock the same afternoon. He appeared before Mr. A. Coles. J.P., in the Magistrate’s Court, Petone, yesterday morning, and was remanded to appear at Wellington on April 5. It was stated by Senior-Sergeant H. Wade that Hayes had been before the court for car conversion at Palmerston North, and was serving a sentence for that. About 4 p.m on Monday he availed himself of an opportunity of breaking away from prison, and hid in some gorse bushes near the prison road entrance until dusk. When he came out from his hiding place lie broke into a house and stole some clothing. .Some of this he wore and the rest, including a dress suit, along witli his prison uniform, he secreted iu the vicinity.

Looking at prisoner, Mr. Coles commented that he apparently broke into a house where he found a good fit in clothes. Senior-Sergeant -Wade said that after breaking into the house he found a motor-ear standing on the side of the road and on a grade, which he made use of. Driving to Petone. he spent the night at a dance in the Oddfellows’ Hall, remaining there till the end. In the meantime the car was reported as stolen, and Constable S. Higgins saw it standing outside the hall. When accused was accosted on going to the car after leaving the dance hail, he denied his identity, but admitted having stolen the car. Later, however, he also admitted having escaped from prison, and also to having broken into the house at Miramar.

The charges preferred against Hayes yesterday were those of escaping from custody, the union ful conversion of a motor-car, the property of Helen Reikes, and breaking and entering the house at Miramar.