Ambulance stolen from Royal Stoke Hospital with patient inside
A 31-year-old man has been arersted
Last updated 26th Mar 2026
A man has been arrested after an ambulance was stolen from outside Royal Stoke University Hospital with a patient and paramedic still on board.
Officers were called out to the hospital at around 8.15pm last night (25th March) following reports of a man driving off in an ambulance.
A paramedic, a patient and another person were in the back at the time.
Officers tracked the ambulance until it stopped at an Esso petrol station on the A34, at the junction of Liverpool Road and London Road in Newcastle-under-Lyme.
A police dog found the suspect in nearby marshland.
He tried to flee but was stopped by the dog and arrested.
A 31-year-old man, from Stoke-on-Trent, has been arrested on suspicion of kidnap, vehicle theft, drink driving and failing to provide a specimen for analysis.
He's currently being questioned in custody.
There were no reported injuries.
A West Midlands Ambulance spokesperson said, "As soon as the vehicle was brought to a stop, a second ambulance was sent to take the patient to hospital whilst a welfare check was carried out on our member of our staff to maintain their wellbeing.
A full investigation, alongside Staffordshire Police, is underway to understand the circumstances surrounding the incident.”