Patient steals ambulance and leads security guard on chaotic chase, Texas police say
A discharged patient led a security guard on a wild chase Wednesday night after stealing an ambulance left running outside a Texas hospital.
According to San Antonio police, EMS personnel had gone inside, leaving the vehicle alone with the keys in the ignition for just a few moments, when the 44-year-old patient jumped in the front seat and sped off around 11:30 p.m.. A guard watched this unfold on hospital security monitors and, concerned there might still be a patient inside, ran out to his car and chased after the ambulance.
The guard called police while pursuing the ambulance, according to SAPD.
Eventually, the suspect drove into a dead end, forcing him to stop. The security guard stepped out of his car to confront the patient, police said, but when he got close, the patient slammed an ambulance door into him.
The guard retreated to his car, grabbing a handgun from the glove box, SAPD said. The patient was now in the street, wielding a knife, moving toward the guard. The guard fired a single shot at him, which police say missed and likely hit the back right tire of the ambulance.
The patient fled in the ambulance, and the guard returned to the hospital.
Soon after, officers managed to chase down the ambulance and arrest the patient, police said.
The tire shot by the security guard shredded while the suspect evaded police, KSAT reported.
After capture, the patient was taken to a hospital for “chest pains.” He was medically cleared and booked for aggravated robbery.
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