NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A patient stole the ambulance that brought him to a Manhattan hospital early Thursday and took a drunken 25-mile joyride before being busted on the Tappan Zee Bridge.
Matthew Checko, 47, was taken to Mount Sinai Morningside for evaluation, sources told the Daily News. Once released, he went back to the ambulance that had transported him, now parked near the emergency bay unoccupied but with keys in the ignition, and fled around 4:50 a.m.
The ambulance was allegedly tracked by a GPS device, and an alert was issued.
New York State Police tried to pull Checko over on I-87 near Exit 9 in Tarrytown and then followed him when he failed to comply, the sources said.
When Checko crossed over the bridge, officially known as the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge, he ran over the stop strips state troopers had laid across the roadway and deflated the ambulance's tires.
He was arrested and charged with grand larceny, possession of stolen property, DWI and fleeing a police officer.
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