A 29-year-old man, who allegedly stole an ambulance in Edmonton and drove it to the Snaring River Bridge before being stopped by an RCMP spike belt, has been charged by police with dangerous driving, flight from police, and theft over $5,000.

John Hamilton Buchanan allegedly stole the ambulance while paramedics were attending to a call in Edmonton. He then evaded the Edmonton Police Service (EPS) and RCMP detachments until Snaring River bridge just east of Jasper before a big truck spike belt stopped his progress at 10 p.m. on Sun, June 7.

The St. Alberta man was monitored by the EPS, Stony Plain, Edson and Jasper RCMP at various stages after he fled Edmonton heading west along Highway 16 in the vehicle.

Once the ambulance stopped, the lone occupant bolted on foot, but was apprehended by Jasper RCMP officers quickly and before making it to the woods, said Cpl. Wayne A. Oaks, communications manager for the RCMP Alberta Division.

The accused was taken into custody and showed no signs of aggression, but Oaks said he did become aggressive once in custody and was taken to the Hinton RCMP detachment.

Durinf the chase, according to Oaks, the man was able to use the ambulance’s radio communications to monitor the RCMP communications, which enabled him to avoid the two other spike-belts that were deployed after he left Edson.

Once the RCMP switched to cell phones, rather than radio communications, they were able to effectively communicate without the accused knowing the next location of the spike belt, which led to his arrest.

Prior to leaving Edson, the RCMP detachment had attempted to pull over the driver, even activating their emergency lights, as the driver failed to stop for a number of stop signs.

After the first failed attempt, police got ahead of the vehicle and again directed the ambulance to pull over using a PA system. According to the RCMP report, the “actions of the driver led officers to believe that (the) driver may be attempting to ram the police car, resulting in evasive actions that prevented a collision.”

While the RCMP report on the incident stated that there was no damage or harm to any people or police vehicles, the ambulance - which was sitting in the Jasper Municipal compound on Monday morning - had a substantial amount of damage.

It’s unsure how the vehicle was damaged, but Oaks suggested it maybe due to the erratic driving of the ambulance, which saw it drive east in westbound lands and vice versa, as well as in and out of the ditches.

Buchanan has also been charged with attempt to escape lawful custody, assault of a peace officer, refusing to comply with demand for breath sample and operating an uninsured motor vehicle. He will appear in Hinton Provincial Court on June 17.