A woman who was arrested for threatening to stab her sister escaped from police custody while at a hospital, prompting a major search involving dozens of officers, dogs, drones, and a helicopter. She was eventually found hiding in the hospital ceiling.
Escape from Morriston Hospital
Georgia Wilshire, 37, was taken to Morriston Hospital in Swansea after being arrested on December 19 last year. Officers became concerned about her medical condition and drove her there from Swansea Central police station. While at the hospital, Wilshire began going to the toilet frequently, a behavior associated with drug withdrawal. When she took longer than usual, officers checked on her only to find she had vanished.
A major search of the hospital grounds was launched, involving 40 police officers, drones, dogs, and a helicopter. The prosecutor, Georgia Donohue, told Swansea Crown Court that the defendant was eventually found in a crawl space in the ceiling of the hospital. Upon being detained, Wilshire apologized to officers, saying she only wanted to collect her drugs and would have come back.
Background of the Incident
The court heard that on the day of the incident, Wilshire and her sister were at their shared home in Pontardawe when the defendant demanded money for drugs. When her sister refused, Wilshire produced a syringe and threatened to stab her, claiming she had Hepatitis C. She then warned her sibling to “watch her back” and threatened to take her dog before going downstairs. The sister heard a smashing noise and found Wilshire in a manic state, armed with a kitchen knife. She retreated upstairs and called the police.
When police arrived, they arrested Wilshire and recovered used drug needles and a bottle of methadone from the property. She was taken to the police station but later transferred to the hospital due to concerns about her condition.
Sentencing and Judge’s Remarks
Wilshire pleaded guilty to threatening with a bladed article in a private place and escaping lawful custody. She has 38 previous convictions for 87 offences, the majority of which are matters of dishonesty. Judge Catherine Richards noted that substance misuse lay at the root of her problems and that Wilshire had failed to tackle her addiction. The judge said the hospital search involved a significant amount of police resources that could have been better used elsewhere.
With discounts for her guilty pleas, Wilshire was sentenced to 23 months in prison: 16 months for the weapon offence and seven months for escaping custody, to run consecutively. She will serve 40% of the sentence in custody before being released on licence. The defendant was also made subject to a two-year restraining order prohibiting contact with her sister, except through a solicitor for the purpose of selling their shared house.
Defense and Mitigation
Andrew Evans, for Wilshire, said the defendant and her sister had a love-hate relationship and that the sibling did not approve of Wilshire’s partner. He noted that they lived in the same house purchased with an inheritance, which created a risk of deterioration. Evans said Wilshire had struggled with heroin addiction for most of her adult life after being introduced to the substance by a partner. When she escaped, she had given little thought to how she would obtain drugs, and she did not leave the hospital. He added that there were plans to sell the house, with Wilshire wishing to move to Essex to be with her mother.
As Wilshire left the video booth, she called out, “Please tell Jordan I love him.”
