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Man arrested after Houston ambulance theft, pursuit

Houston Fire Department EMTs were inside a hospital when the rig was stolen

Jay R. Jordan
Houston Chronicle

HOUSTON — A 29-year-old man is accused of stealing a Houston Fire Department ambulance as firefighters were inside a downtown hospital Friday morning.

The two EMTs riding ambulance 34 were inside St. Joseph’s Hospital on the southeast side of downtown around 3:30 a.m. when the man jumped into the driver’s seat and took off. Fire department dispatchers tracked the ambulance through GPS and sent its location to police officers, who caught up with the rig along the North Loop near North Main Street minutes later.

Officers got behind the ambulance and tried to pull it over after the driver turned north on North Shepherd Drive, but he initially refused to stop, according to Houston Police Department spokesperson John Cannon.

He eventually pulled over near West 34th Street. Officers placed him in handcuffs immediately.

His identity was not released since he has yet to be formally charged, Cannon said.

HFD recovered the ambulance.

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©2020 the Houston Chronicle

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