Handcuffed suspect steals police cruiser

LINCOLNTON, N.C., July 28 (UPI) -- Police in North Carolina said a handcuffed suspect managed to avoid a trip to jail by stealing a police cruiser.

The Lincoln County Sheriff's Office said David Martin, 38, was pulled over on a traffic stop Monday evening and was handcuffed and placed in the back of a deputy's police cruiser for reasons not yet made clear by the sheriff's office, the Charlotte (N.C.) Observer reported Tuesday.

Authorities said Martin somehow managed to climb into the front seat of the Ford Crown Victoria and drive away while the deputy was still outside the car. The cruiser was found abandoned a short time after the incident in nearby Gaston County.

Martin was previously arrested in June on charges of resisting arrest and having an open container of alcohol in a vehicle, the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office said.