Aortic dissection is a rare and potentially life-threatening condition. Neurological complications such as unilateral paralysis as presenting manifestation of aortic dissection are exceedingly rare. We describe a 48-year-old man who presented with acute onset of low back pain, radiating to his right thigh and accompanied with paresthesia and paralysis of the lower right limb. Full resolution of the pain and paralysis occurred within 2 hours of presentation, however, the symptoms recurred 2 hours after full resolution. Computed tomography angiography revealed extensive type A aortic dissection, from the aortic root to the bilateral external iliac arteries. Regrettably, acute cardiac tamponade resulted in sudden death of this patient within 6 hours of onset of symptoms, before any therapeutic intervention could be entertained.