A young man robbed a taxi, drove away and then crashed it into an electric pole yesterday. After arresting him, people found out that he had escaped from a hospital as a mental patient. The robber was Le Ngoc Tai, 21, who got into a taxi cab, which was among many others being parked at the gas station on Nguyen Ai Quoc Street in Tan Tien Ward, Bien Hoa City, Dong Nai Province, and then drove away in a professional manner. The cab’s driver shouted loudly for help, along with other people in the area, and chased after the thief. Tai drove for about one kilometer before he suddenly drove the cab into an electric pole and then a tree, causing serious damage to the front of the vehicle, which is owned by the Saigon Taxi Company. Tai got some slight injuries in the crash and was seized by his pursuers who then handed him to police, who while questioning Tai found signs of mental abnormalities. An investigation was launched and police later discovered that he had escaped from the Central Mental Hospital No. 2 in Bien Hoa. On October 30 Tai, residing in District 2's An Phu Ward, was taken by his family to the hospital for treatment, said Dr Dao Nguyen Binh, the hospital’s deputy director.
At 3 am on November 1, he asked a relative to untie him, saying he needed to go to the toilet, but he later managed to leave the hospital, Binh said. Police said they have returned the damaged taxi to its driver and taken Binh to the hospital again for treatment.