– Atlanta commuter bus hijacking during rush hour
– Passengers texting loved ones during bus hijacking.
Accident – Death – Obituary News :
CNN, WXIA, WANF
By Shawn Nottingham, Nick Valencia and Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN
(CNN) — Atlanta police had barely finished briefing the community about a shooting inside a downtown food court Tuesday afternoon when calls began to come in about a bus hijacking.
A gunman had hijacked a commuter bus with 17 people inside, prompting passengers to frantically text loved ones and call 911 for help, according to police reports.
Police chase and arrest of suspect
As police arrived on the scene and tried to confront the gunman, identified as 39-year-old felon Joseph Grier, the suspect held the bus driver at gunpoint and forced him to speed away, according to Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum.
The ensuing rush-hour police chase zig-zagged across highway lanes and suburban streets as the bus led authorities across at least two counties, at times careening into other cars and crossing into opposing traffic.
Inside the bus, a passenger managed to stay on the line with 911, allowing authorities to hear the commotion, Mayor Andre Dickens described the chaos as resembling a movie scene, with the suspect threatening the bus driver at gunpoint.
When the bus finally came to a stop on a tree-lined street in the suburb of Stone Mountain, passengers were able to exit safely and Grier was arrested without further incident, police said.
A passenger found shot aboard the bus was taken to a hospital, where they later succumbed to their injuries. The victim’s identity will be released once their family has been notified.
The suspect, with 19 prior felony convictions, remains in custody. CNN has been unable to confirm whether the suspect has legal representation.
Details of the harrowing incident
The hijacked Gwinnett County Transit bus is a crucial part of the commuter network connecting Atlanta with its sprawling suburbs. Passenger Paulette Gilbert, who was on board during the incident, managed to contact her husband as events unfolded.
Paulette Gilbert reportedly described a man who boarded the bus and began behaving erratically, leading to a confrontation with another passenger that escalated into a shooting. The suspect, Grier, reportedly seized a gun from a passenger and began threatening others on the bus.
According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Grier then shot the passenger he had been in a fight with and ordered the bus driver to flee the scene while continuing to threaten passengers with the weapon.
Several 911 calls were made during the incident, with one passenger staying connected to emergency services throughout the police chase, providing vital information to law enforcement involved in the pursuit.
The pursuit led police across Atlanta’s Interstate 85 and through various suburban areas before culminating in the arrest of Grier in Stone Mountain. The bus made contact with several vehicles during the chase, though no additional injuries were reported among other drivers.
A joint investigation into the bus hijacking is set to be conducted by the Atlanta Police Department and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Violent day in Atlanta
Atlanta experienced a day of heightened violence on Tuesday, with two separate shootings occurring just four blocks apart. While police have indicated that the incidents are not linked, the close proximity of the events and the extensive criminal histories of the suspects have raised alarm and scrutiny from local officials.
Prior to the bus hijacking, a shooting in a popular food court left three individuals injured. The suspect, a 34-year-old with multiple prior arrests, was swiftly apprehended by law enforcement.
Mayor Dickens addressed the incidents in an evening press conference, highlighting the prevalence of gun violence and the need for further measures to address the issue. Despite the day’s events, he noted that violent crime rates in the city have been on a downward trend.
“Today has been a very active day, but let me be clear, we’re talking about gun violence that is as a result of too many people having guns in their hands,” Mayor Dickens stated. “You’re talking about people that should not have been on the streets with guns.”
CNN’s Steve Almasy contributed to the coverage of this developing story.
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– Bus passengers frantically texted loved ones as gunman hijacked an Atlanta commuter bus during rush hour
– Bus passengers frantically texted loved ones as gunman hijacked an Atlanta commuter bus during rush hour.
