Elderly passengers left terrified after man allegedly hijacked their coach and assaulted three police officers and a dog at an Adelaide bus depot
A man has been tasered twice and pepper-sprayed after allegedly trying to hijack a coach with 40 elderly passengers on board and drive it away from the depot.
Emergency services rushed to the terminal on Franklin Street in Adelaide’s CBD after an intoxicated man entered the bus about 5.45am on Saturday.
SA Police said the 28-year-old man was in the driver’s seat of the bus in an agitated state when they arrived and repeatedly refused to leave the vehicle.
When police tried to remove him from the driver’s seat, two officers were allegedly struck repeatedly in the head, police said in a statement.
Witnesses have since claimed that the man tried to take a female officer’s gun during the struggle.
“Police used capsicum spray in an attempt to subdue the man, but this was unsuccessful and he continued to attempt to drive the bus,” police said.
‘Officers attended to assist and a third member was kicked in the head and suffered a split lip.’
A police dog was called in to help remove the man from the bus, but he was also allegedly assaulted, while his handler was reportedly punched in the face.
A number of police officers were injured following the incident in Adelaide on Saturday (paramedics and police pictured on scene at the Franklin Street terminal)
“Capsicum spray was used on the man a second time and he was successfully removed from the bus and arrested,” police said.
The man was taken to hospital for medical treatment.
He is expected to be charged with four counts of assault on an emergency worker, attempted illegal use and resisting arrest.
Two officers were also taken to hospital after one suffered an eye injury and a second suffered a head injury. No passengers on the bus were injured.
Pastor Peggy Renata said she feared there would have been fatalities had the police not been there.
‘We had a bus full of elderly people about to leave Adelaide and a [allegedly] mentally ill man on the bus who appeared to be completely naked,” she said.
“A very violent brawl broke out on the bus… the police officers who entered the bus were violently attacked.”
One witness claimed she saw a 28-year-old try to take a gun from a female police officer
She said one police officer thought her jaw was completely broken and another officer had his eyes gouged out, rendering him immobile.
Steven Egel, 67, said passengers thought the man was going to put the bus in gear and drive away from the terminal.
“(It was) pretty bad. I jumped up and tried to help. “I grabbed him and grabbed his arm to get him back and stop him,” he said.
Witnesses said the man repeatedly said he wanted to go to Geelong and became agitated when asked to leave the bus.
They said elderly passengers were gagging from police pepper spray.