A British grandmother who has never strayed onto the wrong side of the law in all her 93 years has fulfilled one of her dearest wishes—to be arrested.
To her great delight, Josie Bird was handcuffed by officers and taken off to the local police station.
Her granddaughter, Pam Smith said in a tweet that Josie hadn’t been in the best health recently and that she “wanted to be arrested for something before it’s too late.”
A big thank you to @gmpolice for “arresting” my Gran Josie today. She is 93 years old and her health is failing, and she wanted to be arrested for something before it’s too late. She has a heart of gold and thoroughly enjoyed it today. Thank you for granting her wishes. pic.twitter.com/hi1qkJESwv
— Pam Smith (@sterlingsop) June 22, 2019
She had been well-behaved all her life and “wanted to know what it was like to be naughty.”
Smith told The Manchester Evening News that Josie’s wish to be arrested came from a love of watching police dramas and that the whole experience was very exhilarating for her.
Two off-duty officers arrested her and accused her of robbing a shop, she said. They then handcuffed her and drove her to the local police station, but, instead of putting her in a cell, they gave her tea and cake.
“On this occasion and for a short period of time we were able to fulfill the wishes of an elderly lady, and give her a day to remember,” said Chief Inspector Denise Pye of Greater Manchester Police in northern England.
“We’re glad to see that we were able to make an elderly lady smile and tick one thing off her bucket list,” she added in a statement.
Josie Birds is who I want to be when I grow up (arrested and everything) https://t.co/8nMHri0C5T
— Daphnée Denis ???????? (@daphneedenis) June 26, 2019
In incidents involving grandmas doing odd things, a grandma in Arizona accidentally invited a 17-year-old to Thanksgiving in 2016, the teen arrived after she followed through. In 2017, the teen arrived for Thanksgiving again, but this time he wasn’t alone.
Wanda Dench became a bit of an online sensation last year when she accidentally invited a teen for a Thanksgiving dinner. Even after she had learned she was texting the wrong person, she followed through on the invitation, warming the hearts of millions after the story was picked up by media, social and otherwise.
The teen, Jamal Hinton, 17, indeed came for the dinner and the two formed a bond through the experience. So much so, that this year Dench extended the invitation again and Hinton accepted, this time also bringing his girlfriend Mikaela Grubbs.
2016-2017 thanksgiving pic.twitter.com/CpIgr9KapA
— Jamal Hinton (@kingjamal08) November 24, 2017
“It was really nice having everybody here,” Dench told The Arizona Republic on Saturday, Nov. 25. “We got to laugh about last year and reminisce about how it all blew up on our phone and how I had to change my number. We had a laugh and a good time.”
The two have kept in contact, talking about once a week. They talk about Dench’s family and about Hinton’s plans for the future. He wants to get to a law school and become a sports agent.
“For him to continue with the relationship, I’m just really pleasantly surprised,” Dench said. “We’re more of extended family and, best of all, friends.”
It all started with a text message Dench sent to her grandsons before Thanksgiving 2016. One of the grandsons changed his number and failed to inform his grandmother. And so the message landed in Hinton’s inbox.
He asked who was texting him and when Dench replied she was his “grandma” Hinton asked for her picture. She did.
“You not my grandma,” he replied, sending a picture of himself. “Can I still get a plate tho?”
“Of course you can,” she replied. “That’s what grandma’s do…feed every one.”
Somebody grandma is coming in clutch this year!! Ayee!!! pic.twitter.com/laXmX6rotA
— Don (@CertoNego) November 15, 2016
Conveniently, Dench lives in Mesa, Arizona, while Hinton lives in the neighboring Tempe, just east of Phoenix.
“The world is becoming a better place than it used to be,” Hinton said on Saturday. “I’m loving it. I love that you don’t have to know someone or know their background to be nice to them.”
And the cherry on the cake? He didn’t forget to bring a pumpkin pie this year.
Epoch Times reporter Petr Svab contributed to this article.
