One person was shot dead on board a bus that was hijacked with passengers on board in downtown Los Angeles early this morning, police said.
Police took one suspect into custody early Wednesday who is suspected of hijacking the bus and was unharmed. The bus driver and another passenger were rescued after a police chase and after a SWAT arrived and entered a standoff with the gunman, who has not yet been identified.
No details were provided on the identity of the dead victim, who was shot inside the bus and died at a local hospital, police said.
Deputy Chief Donald Graham told reporters at a news conference at the scene that officers pursued the bus across town for an hour, then used spike strips to bring it to a halt. Several people exited the bus during this time, he said.
Graham said that the driver used “emergency protocols” to sound the alarm. The driver is “in relatively good spirits, although a bit shaken up,” he added. He went on to praise the role of bus drivers in the city, calling them “civil service heroes.”
“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,” he 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.”
“[The] driver is out of the bus with the help of SWAT, uninjured,” an LAPD spokesperson said in an earlier statement, adding that a suspect was in custody.
Police also said earlier that an “additional victim inside the bus is being transported to the hospital” and that CPR was in progress.
LA Metro said in a statement that it was “grateful for the LAPD’s swift action regarding this morning’s bus hijacking incident and is grateful the operator was unharmed.”
“Metro is providing the operator with the support he needs,” the statement added.
This is still an active investigation being led by the LAPD.
Onlookers apparently at the scene while the police operation was in progress posted footage to TikTok and YouTube. In one video showing a parked orange bus, police are heard saying: “This is LAPD, you’re surrounded, come out with your hands up.”
The driver and the alleged hijacker were both evaluated by Los Angeles Fire Department and required no medical treatment.
A further police statement said it was unknown what happened leading up to the incident.
LAPD confirmed shortly before 6 a.m. ET that a bus had come to a standstill at Almeda and 6th Street in downtown Los Angeles and that a SWAT team was on its way to the scene.
This is a breaking story, check back here for updates soon.
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