ASYLUM ESCAPEE

Evening Star, Issue 20373, 3 January 1930, Page 14

ASYLUM ESCAPEE

MADMAN DEFIES POLICE 'A man who had escaped from Coined Hatch Mental Hospital was responsible fox* a violent struggle in a shop in * Graham street, Mare street, Hackney. The man, Patrick Milddleton, aged twenty-two, of powerful build, slipped out of the institution while a dance was m progress, took a car which was standing near and drove to Graham street. He visited an all-night restaurant and, “ spotting ” detectives, dashed into an empty shop and barricaded ' himself in.

During the struggle Middleton smashed practically the whole of the fittings, and hurled anything that came to his hand at the heads of the policemen. He armed himself with the largest piece _ of wood that he could get and with this struck at any policeman who endeavoured to reach him. „ The proprietress of a restaurant off Graham street, where Middleton had an early cut) of tea, said Middleton, who is ’ a Hackney man, was known to her. Detectives warned her of his escape and that probably he would pay a visit to the restaurant. “True enough, early in the morning Patrick did eo, and was served with tea.” said the proprietress. “ Evidently he spied the detectives in the restaurant, for he made a dash for the doorway and ran round to the empty shop nest door and immediately barricaded himself in. “He had collected a quantity of bricks and other things just before the police surrounded the building. Ho had got in through the window at the hack of the shop. This he barricaded with whatever ho could find, and as the officers tried to get into the premises he began to throw bricks and other +hings which came nearest to his hand.- ’ “Very tittle could be seen from the restaurant as to what was happening, but from what I could bear. Middleton seemed to have put up a severe resistance.” Middleton was taken to the police station on a stretcher. The car he commandeered was found in Lincoln’s Inn Field*,