News

Actions

Car theft suspect Sean Behan arrested, but escapes while en route to hospital

Posted at 10:05 PM, Aug 25, 2016
and last updated 2016-08-26 18:20:34-04

A pursuit in Deer Valley came to an end, but the arrested suspect escaped from police while en route to a hospital. 

Phoenix police say they caught suspected car thief Sean Behan driving a stolen vehicle, but when they arrested him he felt sick so they called paramedics. 

Phoenix firefighters took Behan to Deer Valley Medical Center before he was booked to receive treatment, but he escaped from the ambulance at the hospital, according to police.

It turns Behan had swallowed drugs in an attempt to hide them from police. 

Officials say the investigation began when Behan tried to steal someone’s car, but they wouldn’t give up the keys so he kept running. After knocking on several doors with no response he reportedly tried to hot wire a car in a parking lot. 

That's where police and firefighters caught up with Behan. A firefighter wrestled him into the backseat of a patrol car, but the car's parking break wasn't on. The car lurched forward, up a curb and into a concrete wall denting the bumper.

Behan had been running barefoot on hot pavement the entire time while evading officials, so he was taken back to the hospital to be treated for burns.

Behan has a long criminal history for theft and aggravated assault. He wasn’t a model prisoner either; he had been out of jail for about a year.

Stay with ABC15 for updates.