CCTV Shows Thief Breaking Into Ambulance While Paramedics Treat Patient

Police are looking for a man who broke into an ambulance in Birmingham and stole the crew's belongings while they treated a patient at a nearby property. Officials at the West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) have released security camera footage of the Oct. 28 break-in. The footage shows an unidentified man wearing a hoodie approach the ambulance to investigate. The thief leaves, but comes back moments later and breaks a side window in the ambulance. He then leans inside and steals a number of items. Authorities are appealing to the public for help identifying the thief. "It really does make you question the morals of some people," said Nathan Hudson, the WMAS Emergency Services Operations Delivery Director, in a statement. He called the theft "despicable" and said it affected the ability of the ambulance crew to respond to an emergency and thus put citizens at risk. “I cannot begin to understand why someone would do this to an emergency blue lighted vehicle which has the sole responsibility of helping people," Hudson said. "This despicable crime has meant an ambulance is off the road and unable to respond to 999 calls whilst it’s being repaired; money which would’ve been better spent elsewhere in the service to help respond to patients." Ambulance crewmembers had a number of items stolen, including an iPhone. Paramedics were treating a patient in the vicinity while the thief committed the crime. They returned to the vehicle to find the driver's window had been smashed and their personal belongings stolen. "Can you identify this individual who broke into an ambulance & stole personal belongings while the crew were treating a patient in a nearby property?" reads an appeal to public tweeted by @OFFICIALWMAS, the official Twitter account of the West Midlands Ambulance Service.