Florida man crawls through ambulance window in carjacking attempt

LAUDERHILL, Fla. — Firefighters in South Florida thwarted a man who attempted to carjack one of their vehicles Tuesday night, authorities said.

>> Read more trending news

According to Lauderhill Fire Rescue, a man later identified as Freddie Ross, 30, scaled a 7-foot fence behind a fire station and entered the vehicle, the Sun-Sentinel reported. Firefighters said Ross, who had been “running frantically” toward the fire station at about 8:44 p.m. EST, crawled through a window in the fire ambulance, turned on the sirens and attempted to back out of a driveway, the newspaper reported.

“He became aggressive with the crew, trying to force his way into the ambulance,” Jeff Levy, assistant chief of Lauderhill Fire Rescue, told WPLG-TV. “He tried to open up the driver’s side door eventually crawling through the driver’s side window and over the driver.”

After Ross entered the vehicle, the fire crew inside the ambulance jumped out of it to call the police, according to the television station. Crew members believed Ross was safely contained inside the truck and would not be able to harm himself or others.

Then, Ross managed to put the vehicle into reverse.

Firefighter Devitch Nemorin told WSVN-TV that the incident was “shocking, crazy, the last thing you expect to happen.”

“As soon as the truck started rolling backward, we thought, ‘What could possibly happen if he takes the truck?’” Nemorian told the television station.

With the truck still in reverse, the firefighters ran back and pulled Ross out of the ambulance, the Sun-Sentinel reported.

The incident was captured on video by Lauderhill Fire Rescue, according to the newspaper.

“While waiting for the arrival of Lauderhill Police, the firefighters were able to maintain their composure, de-escalate the situation and keep the male subject calm,” Levy said in a news release. “Due to the quick actions of the two Lauderhill firefighters, they were able to prevent serious injury to motorists and prevent damage to the ambulance and other property.”

Nemerin, a rookie firefighter, was one of the men who dragged Ross out of the vehicle.

“We train for a lot of things, but this is one of the things, Nemorin told WSVN. “You just expect the unexpected. That was unexpected, and we handled it the best way possible.”

Major Michael Santiago, a spokesperson for the Lauderhill Police Department, said Ross is under medical care and is not yet facing charges, according to the Sun-Sentinel.

©2022 Cox Media Group