Hilton hotel room horror as man with knife holds woman captive

A terrified woman pleaded with a knife-wielding man not to kill her after he burst into her hotel room, holding her captive in a horrifying ordeal.

Christopher Prior, 39, held the woman hostage after stealing a knife from an Italian restaurant, leaving her in absolute fear and under the impression that he intended to kill her. Prior, who has a lengthy record of violent behaviour, had knocked on her door at the DoubleTree Hilton in Hull while the woman was awaiting a takeaway delivery.

Hull Crown Court heard how the woman was left traumatised after opening the door to Prior on February 26, immediately crying out for help, convinced he meant to harm her. Prosecutor Michael Masson revealed that she pleaded with the man: "Please don't hurt me. I have got children."

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Hull Live reports Mr Masson stated she was told to "stop shouting" and reassured that he was "not going to hurt her", but she remained petrified and fearful of his what he might do. Prior then told her he needed a place to hide, with the prosecutor adding: "She told him that he could stay and that she would leave but he told her to stay in the room. She was absolutely terrified. She thought that she was about to be murdered."

After a mere three minutes, Prior exited the room and later engaged in an altercation with police while brandishing the knife. The Hull-based ex-robber pleaded guilty to charges of false imprisonment, burglary, and possession of a knife, following his theft of the weapon from a local eatery.

Prosecutor Mr Masson detailed how Prior had entered the kitchen of a Hull restaurant around 6.15pm through an open back door, where he "took a kitchen knife" and then kept the blade concealed under his jacket, held tightly on the right side of his body. The terror-stricken victim described the ordeal as the most frightening experience of her life.

The court was informed that the incident left the woman deeply traumatised, plagued by flashbacks, and suffering from intense fear and recurring nightmares in the months that followed. Prior's criminal history includes 74 prior offences, with 43 related to theft, and a previous eight-year sentence handed down at Chester Crown Court in September 2013 for robbery and possession of an offensive weapon.

In 2018, while already in prison, Prior received a 12-year sentence for wounding with intent. His defence, Nigel Clive, conveyed Prior's apologies, stating that his guilty plea was the "next best thing" to undoing his actions. Mr Clive acknowledged there was little that could excuse Prior's behaviour, admitting, "There can be no real mitigation of what he did. He thinks it's disgraceful."

Prior, who had been recalled to prison until 2030 for breaching his licence after a previous release and is "now doing well" following "a month without drugs", was sentenced to three years in jail by Judge Tahir Khan KC. The judge told him unequivocally that there was "was absolutely no good reason for you to be walking around the streets carrying a knife".

He noted: "It wasn't used. That much is for sure but the fact that you had it is deeply troubling." Regarding the hotel incident, Judge Khan said: "You entered her bedroom and it's clear from what she has said that she was terrified, even though your behaviour was not directly threatening towards her."

"She certainly felt that she was going to be killed and that was an entirely understandable reaction. You didn't intend to hurt her. You remained in her room for about three minutes." For the victim, those moments were agonising before he finally left.

The judge highlighted the lasting impact on the victim, stating: "The trauma she went through includes her being fearful for her life and also having flashbacks. This was an offence of false imprisonment of some gravity. The length of detention was not great but the fact that this victim was in an enclosed location must have been terrifying and she clearly was significantly affected by your behaviour."

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