North Carolina driver, passenger have shootout on moving bus: video

News

By Lee Brown

May 29, 2023 | 12:24pm

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT

Terrifying video shows a wild shootout on a moving North Carolina bus — with the driver returning gunfire with a passenger who pulled a weapon on him for not stopping where he wanted.

The disturbing footage from inside a Charlotte bus shows the hooded passenger — identified by cops as Omarri Shariff Tobias, 20 — strolling to the front demanding to be let off.

The bus driver, David Fullard, shakes his head while telling the passenger he can’t stop at the undesignated spot — sparking a series of threats.

“I dare you to touch me! I’m gonna pop your ass,” the passenger says at one point, according to WSOCTV.

The passenger steps back and pulls out a handgun — seemingly unaware that Fullard was also readying a weapon of his own.

As the passenger walks back and raises his weapon, the driver also opens fire — with around a dozen shots fired through a screen, caught on multiple cameras inside the bus, the local outlet noted.

Tobias was seen desperately crawling along the bus to a rear door as two other passengers made a hasty retreat — just for the driver to step out and fire three more shots.

Tobias tumbles out of the exit, as does another passenger who was nearby but uninjured. The driver then gets out and fires one more shot at the gunman, who hides behind a clothing bin.

Tobias was hit in the abdomen and initially hospitalized with suspected life-threatening injuries, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said of the May 18 morning shootout.

He was charged last week with assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injuries, communicating threats and carrying a concealed firearm and is being held in jail ahead of a June 6 court date, records show.

Fullard, the driver, was hit in the arm. He has not been charged, although police stressed that “the investigation” is “active and ongoing.”

However, he was fired from his job of 19 years for breaking rules against being armed, the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) confirmed to CNN.

“It would have been reasonable for the operator to attempt to de-escalate the situation by allowing the suspect/passenger to exit the bus before arriving at the next bus stop,” the transit system also said.

Fullard’s attorney, Ken Harris, called the driver “a dedicated employee” who “treasured his employment.”

He said that drivers do not feel safe in the city, where another driver, Ethan Rivera, 41, was shot dead last year during a suspected road-rage incident.

“I have represented a substantial number of CATS drivers over the years. Some of whom have been assaulted, shot at or shot during their work activity,” Harris said.

“They consider themselves public servants. In light of their commitment, dedication and the workplace dangers that they encounter, we have continuously encouraged the CATS system to enhance security measures for drivers,” Harris said.