In an unprecedented incident, a homeless man stood in front of a stolen fire truck, effectively ending a police pursuit in Anaheim, California.
The Orange County fire truck was stolen at around 1:40 AM from the UC-Irvine Medical Center. Captain Greg Barta of the Orange County Fire Department explained, “As they [firefighters] were dropping off a patient at the hospital, the truck was stolen.”
“Our two firefighter-paramedics were transferring care to the doctors and nurses there. Our captain engineer was busy loading the gear back onto the rig, and at that point, someone took truck 85 and stole it and started driving away from the hospital,” an officer described.
The suspect drove through several communities including Fountain Valley and Irvine, but his escape ended abruptly in Anaheim near Ball Road and Brookhurst Street around 3 AM, thanks to the courageous intervention of Richard Lynn, a homeless man.
Richard positioned himself in front of the moving fire truck and began a conversation with the suspect through the windshield. Despite the suspect’s attempts to maneuver around him, Richard held his ground.
Witness Mitch Fecler captured the moment on his phone. He recalled, “It’s just crazy how the homeless guy walked up and in front of the fire truck and started talking to him through the windshield, and I got a really good picture on my phone and everything.” Mitch added, “They just kept telling him, please get out of the truck. We don’t want to hurt you, and finally, the guy opened the door and surrendered peacefully.”
This brave man intervened because he did not want to see the suspect get hurt. The witnesses said that the discussion lasted around 20 minutes. Thankfully, no one got hurt during the chase and negotiation.
The fire truck sustained minor damage only and was returned to its station in Garden Grove. The suspect did not exceed speeds over 40 miles per hour, and Anaheim Police arrested him, Fox News reported.
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8
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I hope the police did something to support the homeless person to get off the streets