An altercation led to a shootout between a bus driver and passenger while two other people were on the bus in Charlotte, North Carolina, officials said.
The altercation started when the passenger, Omarri Shariff Tobias, asked the driver, David Fullard, to let him off the bus in between stops on May 18, the Charlotte Area Transit System said in a news release to USA TODAY.
After Fullard refused, the two exchanged words for about two-minutes before Tobias pulled out a gun. When Fullard saw the weapon, he quickly took out his gun and a shootout started, CATS said.
“We want to acknowledge that this incident is a tragic expression of the gun violence in our community,” interim CEO of CATS Brent Cagle said in the release.
Surveillance video captures the intense shootout
The two men fired several shots at each other – with some bullets hitting the glass separating the bus driver from passengers.
Tobias crawled to the back of the bus to join the two other passengers who were trying to escape through the back door. Fullard then fired more shots at Tobias, who was standing over one of the passengers.
“Each individual shot the other and both were transported to the hospital with injuries,” CATS said. “Two other adult passengers were on the bus but were not physically injured.”
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department is investigating the incident. The two men are stable and expected to recover, CATS said.
Passenger charged, driver fired
CATS said all operators receive de-escalation training to “appropriately handle contentious situations with passengers” and all buses have “three methods for operators to communicate during emergencies.”
CATS said Fullard did not use any of the three methods – radio and two different alarm systems – and instead fired his weapon.
RATP Dev, the company that employs bus operators, has a policy that prohibits drivers from having a weapon on them while on duty.
“As of today, it is our understanding that RATP Dev has concluded the termination process for Mr. Fullard,” CATS said.
Tobias has been charged with assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injuries, communicating threats and carrying a concealed firearm.
CMPD has not announced if Fullard will be charged.
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