01/24/18 – Kanawha County, WV – Man Steals Ambulance And Led Police On A Chase Through Kanawha County – Man Captured – Arrested

Article Source: www.wsaz.com

Charleston Police have released the name of the man accused of stealing an ambulance and leading police on a chase through Kanawha County.

Charleston Police Chief Steve A. Cooper says Barry Massey stole the ambulance just after 7 a.m. Wednesday from the Operations Center in Charleston.

Police say Massey will be charged with grand larceny and fleeing when he is released from the hospital.

Charleston police stopped the ambulance on Mill Creek. Police say Massey received minor injuries when he resisted arrest and was taken to the hospital. Officers expect him to be released Wednesday afternoon.

No patients or personnel were inside the ambulance at the time it was taken and there were no injuries, according to dispatchers.

Wayne Harmon, with the Kanawha County Emergency Ambulance Authority tells WSAZ one of its crews had just returned from a call when they went inside the operations center to get more supplies. The ambulance was running while the crew was inside the operations center.

Harmon says Massey had just got out of the hospital and was trying to break-in to some cars near the center and then took the ambulance.

Police were able to quickly track down the stolen ambulance because of a GPS system that is in every Kanawha County ambulance, Harmon said.

Harmon says leaving an ambulance running is standard protocol due to patient care because they don’t want the next patient to get in the ambulance and be cold.

However, Harmon says after Wednesday’s incident, the authority will look at the policy and see if any changes need to be made.

Harmon says this isn’t the first time an ambulance has been stolen in recent years. There have been several, including two ambulances that were parked outside of a hospital emergency room in Kanawha County.

Maintenance checked out the stolen ambulance after it was found Wednesday and everything checked out okay. The ambulance is back in service.

The vehicle appeared to belong to Yellow Ambulance Company.