Pregnant prisoner vanishes after rush to maternity hospital

MYSTERY last night surrounded the whereabouts of a heavily pregnant prisoner who was rushed to the Mid-West Regional Maternity Hospital from Limerick prison with labour pains, but who left without being examined.

The woman who is 28 and from West Limerick hasn’t been seen since she was brought to the hospital on Tuesday.

Gardaí arrested her and brought her to prison on Monday after refusing to pay fines totalling €230.

After complaining of labour pains on Tuesday she was rushed to the hospital.

However, a spokeswoman for the Health Service Executive said yesterday: “The hospital has no record of this woman at the hospital. A detective called and inquired about her.”

The governor of Limerick prison, Pat Laffan said the woman was brought to the prison on Monday to serve two concurrent sentences of three days and 15 days for non-payment of fines.

He said the woman asked for a doctor on Tuesday morning and she was immediately seen by the prison doctor who asked that she be moved to the maternity hospital.

Governor Laffan said a nurse attached to the prison went with the woman to the hospital.

A short time prior to leaving the prison, the authorities granted her temporary release, and told her she need not return.

But the mystery deepened yesterday when the hospital said they had no record of the woman being medically examined there.

Inspector John O’Sullivan said the woman was arrested in Newcastle West on Monday, on foot of two penal warrants issued some time previously to the gardaí by the court service and signed by a judge.

He said the gardaí had made repeated efforts to persuade the woman to pay two fines totalling €230.

They were imposed at Rathkeale District Court on December 13, 2005, in respect of two road traffic offences.

She was given six months to pay a €30 fine or face three days in prison in default and fined €200 for a second motoring offence and given six months to pay or face 15 days in jail in default.

Insp O’Sullivan said the gardaí have to act when warrants are issued by the court service.

He said: “A garda dealing with it asked her a number of times and she said she was not going to pay up and to bring her in.”

Again on Monday they tried to persuade her to pay and when she refused they had no choice but to bring her to Limerick prison as set out in the court warrant.