Mum denies escape plot

A 65-year-old grandmother says the last thing she’s capable of is helping her son escape police custody.

Police allege a plot by ‘‘dangerous offender’’ James Maurirere’s family allowed him to escape his guard at Wairarapa Hospital, where he was getting treatment.

They have accused two family members of creating a disturbance that allowed him to flee but his mother Carley Maurirere says they’re wrong.

‘‘The only family there that day were me and my other son, who has brain damage. The last thing we could manage is something like this.’’

Maurirere escaped from hospital last week after he was arrested in relation to domestic violence offending. Police said he was found in the Hutt Valley yesterday and taken into custody at Rimutaka Prison.

On Monday, Wairarapa area commander Inspector Scott Miller said the 32-year-old was locked in the cells at Masterton Police Station on February 20 when he complained he was ill.

He was taken to hospital by ambulance and had been treated by medical staff for 90 minutes when family members turned up and caused a disturbance.

‘‘I would say the family that went, they did that deliberately. I don’t think there’s any doubt about that. We’re not getting huge co-operation from the family.

‘‘I think the family had a plan and they went through with that plan, and he got away.’’

Maurirere left the hospital through a rear entrance.

Yesterday, his mother said the disturbance Miller referred to was that she had asked the police officer guarding Maurirere to step out of the hospital room and read her a text he had sent on her son’s behalf.

She couldn’t read it because of a recent eye surgery.

She and her other son had been waiting for Maurirere to appear in court when she was told he was in hospital.

‘‘How would we plan an escape when we didn’t even know where he was?’’

His mother was devastated to be accused of helping her son escape and was relieved he had been found. ‘‘I can finally go to sleep.’’

Police declined to comment.