Great Escape From Care Home
Posted: 06 Jun 2014, 18:28http://news.sky.com/story/1276981/d-day ... -care-home
An 89-year-old Royal Navy veteran has turned up in Normandy for the D-Day commemorations after ignoring a travel ban imposed by his care home.
Police were called to the man's nursing home in Hove, Sussex, on Thursday night when staff realised he had gone out at 10.30am and had not been seen since.
The man has since been named on social media as Bernard Jordan, a former mayor of Hove, and his carehome has tweeted a photo of him.
The pensioner 'went AWOL' wearing his war medals covered by a grey jacket and secretly boarded a coach to France.
Bernard Jordan
Mr Jordan with a picture of when he was mayor (Pic: Gracewell Healthcare)
Police initially searched the Hove area, speaking to bus and taxi companies and checking local hospitals in case something had happened to him.
Then, at 10.30pm on Thursday - 12 hours after he was last seen - a younger veteran called to say he had met the pensioner on a coach on the way to France.
He said the pair were sitting in a hotel in Ouistreham, Normandy, where world leaders have been mingling with veterans to mark the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings.
Mr Jordan is said to be safe and well.
A Sussex Police spokesman said: "We have spoken to the veteran who called the home today and are satisfied that the pensioner is fine and that his friends are going to ensure he gets back to Hove safely over the next couple of days, after the D-Day celebrations finish."
Chief Superintendent tweeted: "Love this - 89-year-old veteran reported missing to us by care home who said he can't go to Normandy for D-day remembrance. We've found him there!"
An 89-year-old Royal Navy veteran has turned up in Normandy for the D-Day commemorations after ignoring a travel ban imposed by his care home.
Police were called to the man's nursing home in Hove, Sussex, on Thursday night when staff realised he had gone out at 10.30am and had not been seen since.
The man has since been named on social media as Bernard Jordan, a former mayor of Hove, and his carehome has tweeted a photo of him.
The pensioner 'went AWOL' wearing his war medals covered by a grey jacket and secretly boarded a coach to France.
Bernard Jordan
Mr Jordan with a picture of when he was mayor (Pic: Gracewell Healthcare)
Police initially searched the Hove area, speaking to bus and taxi companies and checking local hospitals in case something had happened to him.
Then, at 10.30pm on Thursday - 12 hours after he was last seen - a younger veteran called to say he had met the pensioner on a coach on the way to France.
He said the pair were sitting in a hotel in Ouistreham, Normandy, where world leaders have been mingling with veterans to mark the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings.
Mr Jordan is said to be safe and well.
A Sussex Police spokesman said: "We have spoken to the veteran who called the home today and are satisfied that the pensioner is fine and that his friends are going to ensure he gets back to Hove safely over the next couple of days, after the D-Day celebrations finish."
Chief Superintendent tweeted: "Love this - 89-year-old veteran reported missing to us by care home who said he can't go to Normandy for D-day remembrance. We've found him there!"