Suspect in stolen ambulance leads police chase before crashing in south Houston; suspect detained

FULL coverage: Stolen Houston ambulance leads police chase, standoff

A driver is in police custody after stealing an ambulance from a south Houston hospital, according to authorities. The situation developed during FOX 26's "Houston Live & Local," and our crew followed the story live on-air.

HOUSTON - A driver is in police custody after stealing an ambulance from a south Houston hospital, according to authorities.

Stolen Houston ambulance

FULL official report: Houston police chase involving stolen ambulance

A driver is in police custody after stealing an ambulance from Ben Taub Hospital in south Houston. HPD Lt. Larry Crowson provided details of the incident

What we know:

A call came in shortly before 6:30 p.m. Tuesday about an ambulance that had been stolen.

Police tell FOX 26 that the vehicle was taken from Ben Taub Hospital's emergency room area.

HPD Lt. Larry Crowson says the ambulances have trackers, so Houston fire officials were able to tell police where the stolen ambulance was going.

Officers went after the vehicle for about 30 minutes. Lt. Crowson said the ambulance went up to 50mph, and the driver used its sirens to get through traffic.

Police in unmarked vehicles chased the ambulance at first, then an HPD helicopter started following the vehicle, allowing officers on the ground to fall back.

The ambulance then veered off the road around West Bellfort Avenue and Almeda Road. Lt. Crowson said the driver lost control, fell into a ditch, and got stuck in the mud.

Police reportedly ordered the suspect to leave the ambulance, but he refused to do so. Officers then broke a window, but the driver still refused to leave, and allegedly tried to start the ambulance back up.

FULL VIDEO: SkyFOX captures end of chase involving stolen ambulance in Houston

SkyFOX was over the scene after a stolen ambulance crashed into a tree in southwest Houston on Wednesday evening.

A K9 officer went into the vehicle and grabbed the suspect by the arm.

According to Lt. Crowson, the suspect is going back to Ben Taub for treatment on his K9 injury, then he will be booked into jail.

No other injuries were reported.

What we don't know:

No one has been identified at this time.

There's no information at this time on how the suspect got access to the ambulance.

What they're saying:

The Houston Fire Department posted a response to the incident on X: "Please do not steal our ambulances while we are transferring care at the hospital.  Big thanks to HPD and Pct 7 for their quick work on ending this dangerous situation."

This is a developing news report. We will update as more information becomes available.