A gunman hijacked a bus along with its passengers and shot dead one person in downtown Los Angeles on Wednesday (Sep 25), said the police.
After an hour-long wild chase by the police and the arrival of a SWAT team, the bus driver and another passenger were rescued, said the police.
Speaking to reporters at a press conference, Deputy Chief Donald Graham said that officers used spike strips to stop the bus, after which several people exited from it.
🚨🇺🇸SUSPECTED BUS HIJACKING IN LOS ANGELES LEAVES ONE SERIOUSLY INJURED
— World Safety (@nickngei2) September 25, 2024
LAPD has taken a suspect into custody following a suspected bus hijacking in Los Angeles, leaving one person seriously injured.
The SWAT team safely removed the driver, who was uninjured.
An additional pic.twitter.com/Ex1J12x44Y
The police have taken into custody the gunman, however, he has not yet been identified.
In the press conference, Graham said that “emergency protocols” were used by the driver to sound the alarm. The driver is “in relatively good spirits, although a bit shaken up,” he said.
“This operator continued to operate the bus in as safe a manner as he could under the circumstances, with the police trailing him for an hour before the spike strips finally took effect,” Graham said.
“So I think the world of the operator, and this individual and bus operators in general, for the job that they have to do,” he added.
Meanwhile, an LAPD spokesperson had earlier said, “[The] driver is out of the bus with the help of SWAT, uninjured”.
🇺🇸 Hostage situation in Los Angeles unfolded, the police blocked a hijacked bus!
— Lord Bebo (@MyLordBebo) September 25, 2024
The driver was able to escape through the window.
It’s unclear if there are other people inside atm . pic.twitter.com/eA4wj0IOWp
The police also confirmed that an “additional victim inside the bus is being transported to the hospital” and that the CPR was in progress.
In a statement, LA Metro said that it was “grateful for the LAPD’s swift action regarding this morning’s bus hijacking incident and is grateful the operator was unharmed.”
Onlookers say frantic chase looked like a scene from ‘Speed’
The footage of the police operation was recorded by the onlookers who shared it on TikTok and YouTube.
In one footage, a parked orange bus was seen and police were heard saying: “This is LAPD, you’re surrounded, come out with your hands up.”
In front of the bus was parked an armoured police truck and a SWAT squad had reached the site of action.
As per the witness, the frantic chase of the suspect by the police across the California city “looked like the movie Speed.”
The incident is being investigated by the LAPD.