Escaped prisoner Ricky Wilson caught by police in Upper Hutt

Runaway prisoner Ricky Wilson was arrested in Upper Hutt this afternoon.

The 29-year-old man escaped from correctional custody last night while being transported to Rimutaka prison from the hospital.

He has been charged with escaping custody and is due to appear in Hutt Valley District Court tomorrow.

“We would like to thank the public for their help and patience,” said a police spokesman.

“We appreciate that this was a stressful time for the community as officers searched for the man.”

The acting director of the Rimutaka prison, Steve Morgan, said public safety was the top priority and that a full operational review of the circumstances of the incident was underway.

“We hope this review will identify how this incident occurred and what steps can be taken to prevent this from happening again,” said Morgan.

“As this is subject to a police investigation, we have limitations as to the details we can provide, but we can confirm that the prisoner was accompanied by two custodial and handcuffed staff members.”