ST. LOUIS – A 48-year-old O’Fallon, Missouri man was charged Wednesday for allegedly stealing an ambulance in Jefferson County and driving it up Interstate 55 before crashing in St. Louis City.
The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department said multiple agencies followed the ambulance along northbound I-55 at about 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 3. Once the vehicle traveled into St. Louis County, Jefferson County deputies terminated their pursuit.
The ambulance continued onward into St. Louis City, swerving in and out of traffic. The driver got on and off the interstate multiple times.
At one point, the ambulance sped into the intersection of S. Jefferson Avenue and Arsenal Street, and collided with a SLMPD vehicle. The driver finally exited the vehicle in the 7600 block of Broadway and was taken into custody just after 10 a.m.
The St. Louis Circuit Attorney’s Office charged the suspected driver, Dwane Vardiman, with one count of first-degree assault – special victim, resisting arrest, first-degree tampering with a vehicle, and armed criminal action. Vardiman remains jailed without bond.