Philadelphia man steals ambulance, leads police on chase through streets

A man is accused of stealing an ambulance and leading police on a nearly 90-minute chase through the streets of Philadelphia on Friday night, authorities said.

The incident began around 9:20 p.m. when a medical unit responded to the Roosevelt Inn, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The man, who was not wearing a shirt or pants, allegedly became combative, and police were called to the scene, the newspaper reported.

At that point, police said the man, who was in his 40s, stole the unoccupied ambulance and started driving toward an officer, who fired four shots and hit the man twice in the left leg and once in the side, Philadelphia Police Staff Inspector Sekou Kinebrew said at a news conference Friday night. the Inquirer reported. The vehicle struck the officer, who was taken to a local hospital. the Inquirer reported.

The man began weaving through traffic, WCAU reported. During the mostly slow-paced police chase, the man struck two police cruisers and one civilian vehicle, the Inquirer reported.

“It varied in speed from around 10 mph up to about 25 mph during the majority of the male’s attempt to flee,” Kinebrew said.

At one point, a tow truck driver tried to block the ambulance, but the man hit the vehicle and continued to elude authorities, the Inquirer reported.

The man evaded the police until he ended up in a northeast Philadelphia neighborhood, where he was taken into custody, WCAU reported.

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