TORONTO: Hamilton Police have arrested a man who allegedly stole a Hamilton Street Railway (HSR) bus while the driver was on a break and subsequently drove the route with passengers still onboard.
The bizarre incident occurred around 9 p.m. recently at the MacNab Terminal. The legitimate bus driver had stopped the bus at the terminal to take a break. The suspect entered the stationary bus and proceeded to drive it away with unsuspecting passengers inside.
According to Hamilton Police, the man did not follow the bus’s regular route, yet he remarkably operated the vehicle as if he were the authorized driver. He stopped at every scheduled bus stop along the way, picking up and dropping off passengers. In a further display of acting the part, the ‘fake driver’ even refused entry to a customer who attempted to board with an expired bus pass.
Police were quickly notified of the theft by the bus’s actual driver. Officers successfully intercepted the stolen vehicle and apprehended the suspect before the bus was brought to a stop on West 5th Street.
The 36-year-old man, whose clear address was not immediately known, has been charged with four offences in connection with the incident. The investigation is ongoing.
