TriCities.com
GREENE CO., Tenn. - The theft of a van, abduction of a nine-year-old child and subsequent pursuit through three jurisdictions has led to the arrest of a nursing home patient facing multiple charges.
According to Washington County, Va. Sheriff Fred Newman, the incident began yesterday morning when another man came to pick up a nursing home patient at the Greendale Home for the Aged. The man left his van momentarily unattended, with his son inside, while he went inside the nursing home. During that time, a nursing home patient stole the car.
Units from the sheriff’s department and Virginia State Police located the vehicle and began a pursuit that hit speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour. Attempts to conduct a “rolling road block” proved unsuccessful to stop the suspect, but police were eventually able to end the pursuit and arrest 47-year-old Steven Thornburg