12/3/21 Port Huron, IL – 70 Year Old Patient At Port Huron McLaren Hospital Steals Port Huron Police Car Left Running While The Officer Was Assisting Another Patient – Police Car Crashed

Port Huron police are investigating the crash of a stolen cop car Thursday night after a patient at a local hospital drove away with a patrol vehicle while an officer was helping another resident in need of medical attention.

According to police, the officer brought a resident to Port Huron McLaren and, while there, an unrelated 70-year-old Lexington man is alleged to have unknowingly walked out and opened the driver’s side door of the vehicle, which had been left running and unlocked.

The man then reportedly drove the patrol car without headlights on and exited the hospital lot before heading southbound on 10th Avenue and crossing the 10th Street Bridge. Police said the man collided the vehicle with that of a 35-year-old Fort Gratiot man at 10th Street and Lapeer Avenue.

Lt. Nick Godwin said early Friday, that the incident occurred at approximately 9 p.m. Thursday.

He said the other driver and a 39-year-old passenger from Port Huron were uninjured. The man who took the police car, according to a news release, had a head injury, appeared disoriented, and was transported back to McLaren by Tri-Hospital EMS.

Port Huron police road patrol, the Major Crimes Unit, and accident investigators responded to the scene, and it remains under investigation.

Anyone with information about the stolen vehicle or traffic crash was encouraged to call the Port Huron Police Department at (810) 984-8415 or CAPTURE at (810) 987-6688. Anonymous messages can also be received by texting the keyword CAPTURE and a tip to 847411, by downloading the Port Huron PD app, or via email by clicking on the CAPTURE link at www.porthuronpolice.org.