Cops: Drunk man steals ambulance, leads slow chase

[April 20, 2010]  SAN DIEGO (AP) -- San Diego police said a man just out of the hospital for intoxication stole an ambulance and fled from police before they stopped him with spike strips. Police said 52-year-old Paul John Sos was arrested Saturday on suspicion of auto theft, failure to yield to police and felony drunk driving.

Police Sgt. Ray Battrick said Sos had been found drunk and taken to Sharp Hospital in a private ambulance. Battrick said Sos checked himself out Saturday morning then found an unattended fire department ambulance with keys in the ignition.

The ambulance had GPS installed and police quickly found it, but Sos refused to stop, leading a slow pursuit through residential streets before he was stopped with spike strips and arrested.

Police did not know if he had hired an attorney.

[Associated Press]

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