Surveillance footage shows a woman recently discharged from a Mission hospital steal an ambulance from the facility and drive away in it Friday, July 15, 2022. (Video still)
A Mission woman was arrested Friday for stealing an ambulance from the local hospital where she had just been discharged.
The 31-year-old woman, whose identity remains unclear, stole a Pharr EMS ambulance as the paramedics were taking a patient into Mission Hospital from rural Alton, police said in a news release Friday.
The ambulance arrived at 11:59 a.m., and as paramedics took the patient into the hospital, the woman who was waiting for a ride decided to board the driver’s side of the ambulance and speed off.
In surveillance footage, the woman could be seen struggling to close the door and then putting on the seat belt.
Although a security guard at the scene attempted to stop her, she managed to push him out of the way and drive off in the ambulance around 12:02 p.m., according to the release. She had managed to take the ambulance in just three minutes.
According to the release, the medics at the scene contacted Mission police and provided officers with “live feedback to officers since the ambulance is equipped with an internal camera system.”
The ambulance was located by Palmview police which led to a pursuit that ended at the 492 BBQ restaurant in Mission.
The 31-year-old woman was arrested by Mission police and charged with aggravated robbery. Police have yet to identify the woman but she is scheduled to be arraigned Saturday morning at the Mission Municipal Court.
