A missing Yorkshire gran spent five days and nights in London Victoria Coach Station, sleeping on seats within the station and begging for change to survive.
Sixty-year-old Vera Tothova’s relieved family said she arrived back home in Wakefield in the early hours at 1.30am today (Tuesday, April 16), after absconding last Wednesday morning at about 10am (April 10).
They’ve said the poor confused woman, who suffers from serious mental health issues, spent each night sleeping on seats within the station and begged for change so she could buy food to survive. Her worried daughter Ada Sarko said during this time, her mum felt ‘lost and stressed’.
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Vera is from the Czech Republic and speaks little English. Ada says the gran-of-eight, and mother-of-five, had left home with her passport with the aim of returning to her home country via the capital.
She travelled to Leeds and then boarded a coach to London Victoria Station. However, when she arrived, she realised she didn’t have any money to finance such a long trip.
(Image: Ada Sarko)
During this time, Vera’s distraught family reported her absence to West Yorkshire Police and searched around Wakefield, including in nearby rivers and forests, and received reports of sightings at Leeds Train Station.
Ada said: “She was sleeping in Victoria Coach Station in the seats. She wanted to go to Czech Republic but she didn’t have enough money.
“Everybody was in shock, we only learned about this last night. We were so happy but so shocked when she came back.
“I asked why didn’t she ask for the police or for help from anybody in the coach station but she said she saw no one with the hi-vis. She said it was so stressful.
“She didn’t have enough money when she was there for food, so she had to ask people there if they could give her a £1 or 50p to buy food.”
(Image: Ada Sarko)
Ada added that Vera managed to get back home by using her old ticket and that the family is just “happy” their dear mum and grandma is back home safe. Ada says her mum is relieved to be back home in Eastmoor, after telling her children she felt “lost” during the whole time she was in the coach station.
Ada says the family will now take precautions to make sure this doesn’t happen again. Transport for London, who run Victoria Station, has been asked for a comment.
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