By Shawn Henry 
A Wisconsin ambulance call turned into a rolling nightmare Tuesday night when police say a naked man jumped into the driver’s seat of an active emergency vehicle — with a seriously ill patient already inside — and led officers on a high-speed chase.
According to the Wisconsin Rapids Police Department, paramedics were loading a patient into the back of the ambulance when 37-year-old Benjamin L. Feltz allegedly climbed into the cab and took off.
The patient wasn’t stable. Authorities say she was suffering from kidney disease and was en route for medical care when the ambulance suddenly became a getaway vehicle.
Police say the chase stretched more than 18 miles over roughly 40 minutes, with the ambulance reaching speeds above 90 miles per hour. At one point, the vehicle reportedly veered onto a dirt road near a landfill before reentering Highway 73, where it continued swerving through traffic.
Inside the back, the patient feared for her life.
Investigators say she shouted that she was “dying from kidney disease” in an attempt to get the driver to stop.
Officers attempted to end the pursuit using a tire deflation device. After one tire was compromised, police say Feltz continued driving before eventually steering the ambulance off-road into a muddy cornfield, where the vehicle became stuck.
Body camera footage shows the suspect exiting the ambulance completely naked as officers approached with weapons drawn.
Police allege Feltz appeared intoxicated and told officers he had consumed part of a bottle of household chemical cleaner and had marijuana in his system. Court records show he has prior Operating While Intoxicated convictions and did not have a valid driver’s license at the time.
He now faces multiple felony and misdemeanor charges, including first-degree reckless endangering safety, and is being held on a $100,000 bond, according to court filings.
The patient was ultimately transferred to another ambulance and received medical care. Authorities have not released further details about her condition.
What began as a routine medical transport became a 90-mph emergency involving a stolen ambulance, a critically ill patient, and a suspect who allegedly turned a lifesaving vehicle into a high-speed threat.
Police say the investigation remains ongoing.
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