Passenger killed when gunman hijacks city bus, leads police on chase through downtown Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A passenger was killed after a gunman hijacked a metropolis bus in Los Angeles early Wednesday, resulting in a gradual police chase by downtown earlier than the suspect was ultimately arrested, authorities stated.

The armed man boarded the Metro bus with the driving force and two passengers aboard shortly earlier than 1 a.m. in South Los Angeles, in line with the Los Angeles Police Division.

Officers approached the bus because it slowly rolled away. A cavalcade of police autos adopted it as the driving force drove at gunpoint for the following hour. A flashing signal on the entrance of the bus learn: “Emergency. 911 Name Police.”

Police deployed spike strips, which punctured one of many tires. After touring greater than 7 miles (11 kilometers), the bus ultimately got here to a cease at a downtown intersection close to the town’s Arts District, and the suspect surrendered, officers stated.

TV information footage confirmed a sequence of small explosions across the bus stopped within the neighborhood of lofts and warehouses, then police storming aboard with shields. The bus driver climbed out of window and ran to security behind an armored car whereas officers moved in.

A person was discovered contained in the bus with gunshot wounds, however particulars about what led as much as the capturing weren’t instantly accessible. The sufferer was taken to a hospital, the place he was pronounced lifeless, officers stated.

The driving force and the second passenger had been handled by paramedics on the scene and launched. In an announcement, Metro stated the bus driver was OK and receiving the help he wants.

Police praised the driving force for maintaining calm.

“This operator continued to function the bus in as secure a way as he might underneath the circumstances, with the police trailing him for an hour earlier than the spike strips lastly took impact,” stated Deputy Chief Donald Graham instructed reporters.

The killing is the newest in a sequence of violent incidents. together with stabbings and shootings. on buses and trains as Los Angeles seeks to develop the transit system forward of internet hosting the Olympics in 2028. In Could, Mayor Karen Bass referred to as for elevated safety on transit routes.

In March, a person who indicated he had a gun hijacked a Metro bus in downtown LA after which grabbed the wheel, inflicting the bus to collide with a number of autos and crash right into a lodge.