Police: Hospital patient hijacked ambulance to drive himself home

Police: Hospital patient hijacked ambulance to drive himself home
(Image credit: iStock)

After what was likely one too many bowls of Jello, one man at West Valley Hospital in the Phoenix area decided he had to make a break for it.

Goodyear police spokeswoman Lisa Kutis told The Associated Press that West Valley patient Michael Lopez felt he was being hospitalized against his will, and hijacked an ambulance parked outside the hospital. A firefighter in the back safely jumped out, and police were eventually able to track the ambulance down at Lopez's home using GPS.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.