Charlotte Observer

SHELBY, N.C. — Shelby police have a man in custody this morning after a suspect who complained of an illness drove off in an ambulance and led authorities on a chase through the city.

The series of events began shortly before 10 p.m., when emergency medical personnel picked up a man who complained of illness. They took the man to Cleveland Regional Medical Center in Shelby.

A short time later, police were sent in pursuit of a stolen ambulance.

The Shelby Star newspaper is reporting that the man who was taken to the hospital ran out of the emergency room and drove off in the ambulance.

The Star says law enforcement personnel spotted an ambulance a short time later on Fallston Road. When authorities realized there had been no emergency call in that area, they realized it was the stolen vehicle.

Police pursued the vehicle for 45 minutes, on about a dozen streets in the Shelby area, before finally pulling over the vehicle and arresting the suspect.

There is no word why the man tried to escape.