A man armed with a BB gun hijacked an MTA bus in Queens early Thursday -- and crashed the vehicle into a utility pole after the driver jumped out a window a few blocks earlier, according to police.
After surveillance video showed the man trying (and failing) to wave down a bus in Cambria Heights, authorities said the suspect ran in front of a Q4 bus holding what appeared to be a firearm at 199th Street and Linden Boulevard around 7:30 a.m. He boarded and hijacked the bus using the BB gun.
The driver then opened all the doors to let the roughly two dozen passengers off, and they escaped, leaving the bus driver alone with the hijacker, officials said. None of the passengers were injured.
Cops said the hijacker, later identified as Dwayne Gaddy, made statements about being chased and ordered the driver to keep driving. He did, for another 30 or so blocks, cops said.
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Once the bus neared 232nd Street and Linden Boulevard, the driver jumped out of the driver's side window and the hijacker leaped into the driver's seat. Gaddy grabbed the wheel and started driving, officials said.
The hijacker only made it a block or so before he crashed into a utility pole between 233rd and 234th streets. The 44-year-old suspect got off the bus, which was crushed under the pole, and was taken into custody across the street, police said. The bus driver who jumped out the window was taken to a hospital with minor injuries.
No injuries were reported to any passengers on the bus, though the fallen utility pole triggered power outages for dozens of customers in the area.
Gaddy, who also was treated at a hospital for minor injuries, was arrested and faces charges including unlawful imprisonment, reckless endangerment, weapon possession and menacing officials said. The weapon (pictured below) was recovered, as was what police believe was Gaddy's backpack at the scene.
A top MTA official said the agency was thankful no one was seriously hurt in the chaos and said the bus driver had been with the MTA for 21 years. He was said to be at the hospital with MTA management and union representatives into the early afternoon hours. No details on the nature of his injuries were immediately available.
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"I definitely want to commend the driver for his actions. He did not move the bus until everyone was off the bus and then they continued traveling eastbound on Linden Boulevard," said NYPD Chief Jerry O'Sullivan.
The investigation is ongoing. Anyone who was on the bus or has additional information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.
