A handcuffed woman being transported for treatment after she was taken into custody by sheriff’s deputies jumped out of a moving ambulance, ran into some woods and vanished, according to Orange County sheriff’s deputies.
Investigators said Lisa McCoy, 34, was picked up Wednesday on an outstanding warrant. She was wanted for failure to appear on a petty theft charge.
When McCoy was taken into custody, she complained she was having a panic attack, police told Local 6 News.
Deputies handcuffed the woman and an ambulance was called to take her for treatment.
Officers said a paramedic was supposed to be watching her during a trip to the hospital.
“He moved to the front to call in the transport and when he did that, that is when she jumped out,” Orange County sheriff’s Sgt. Roland Rivera said.
The woman fled into some woods near Turkey Lake and Sand Lake roads and vanished.
“We probably went to a half to three-quarters of a mile before it appears she probably caught a ride with somebody else,” Orange County sheriff’s Deputy Jeff Brown said. “Somebody gave her a ride out of the area.”
An Orange County sheriff’s deputy was supposed to be following the ambulance but he got stuck in traffic.
“(The agent) was probably 200 yards behind (the ambulance) when she jumped out and he lost sight of her,” Rivera said.
“That doesn’t say a lot about our county sheriff’s system,” a motorist on the scene said. “Obviously, my level of confidence went down a bit.”
McCoy is 5-feet 3-inches tall and has an American flag tattoo on her shoulder.
