An Akron woman was arrested early Monday after police say she slipped behind the wheel of an ambulance that was on scene for a medical call and drove off. Officers tracked the rig down about two blocks away in the parking lot of the former Chapel Hill Mall and took the woman into custody without incident. Firefighters checked the vehicle, found no damage and nothing missing, and quickly placed the ambulance back into service.
How the theft unfolded
According to Cleveland19, Akron firefighters said crews were dispatched to the 1600 block of Brittain Road at 1:47 a.m. for a medical call. While medics were evaluating a patient, the suspect allegedly climbed into the unattended ambulance and drove away.
Another ambulance was sent to the original call, and Akron police began looking for the missing unit. Officers found it shortly after 2 a.m. sitting in the former Chapel Hill Mall parking lot, roughly two blocks from where the crew had been working.
The woman was arrested and charged with grand theft, misconduct at an emergency and disrupting public service. Authorities have not released her name.
Not the first time
While incidents like this do not happen every day, they are not unheard of when emergency vehicles are left unattended or when someone in crisis sees an opening and takes it. A 2018 report from WCTV detailed a Georgia case where a woman stole an ambulance and led officers on a high-speed chase. In 2025, WV MetroNews reported that West Virginia troopers arrested a woman after she took an ambulance and sparked a brief pursuit.
Those cases, along with the Akron incident, underscore how quickly an emergency scene can turn risky for patients and first responders when an EMS unit is taken without authorization.
Legal consequences
Under Ohio law, taking a motor vehicle can be charged as grand theft of a motor vehicle, a fourth-degree felony in many circumstances, depending on the facts and the value involved, as outlined in the Ohio Revised Code. Motor vehicle theft is treated as a serious offense, and Summit County prosecutors will ultimately decide what charges to pursue in this case.
The quick recovery of the ambulance and the fact that it was returned to service without damage are among the details that could factor into charging decisions and any later court proceedings.
