JUNEAU, ALASKA – An Alaska woman accused of stealing a police car with her husband handcuffed in the back seat faces several charges including theft and hindering prosecution, troopers said Friday.
The woman slipped into the patrol car on Wednesday and drove off while a state trooper was engaged with a passing motorist on an unrelated topic, a trooper dispatch report said.
Authorities found the car not far from where it was stolen in Big Lake, a lakeside community of 3,500 people about 65 miles (100 km) northwest of Anchorage.
The following day, troopers arrested Amber Watford, 28, and Joshua Watford 38, in a home in Wasilla, about 45 miles (72 km) north of Anchorage.
Joshua Watford was first arrested in Big Lake on Wednesday for failure to appear at court-ordered, alcohol-related classes from a previous driving under the influence charge, State Trooper spokeswoman Megan Peters said.
Not long after his arrest, Watford’s wife made off with the patrol car, and the couple remained at large for about 30 hours, the trooper report said.
No one else was charged in connection with the incident, Peters said.
