A man and woman allegedly attacked an on-duty MTA bus driver who refused to open the doors for them when they knocked mid-stop, throwing some liquid in his face and beating him badly when they eventually boarded, authorities say.
The two initially tried to board the BX18 bus as it sat between stops around 4 p.m. last Thursday. They knocked on the doors but the driver, as is MTA policy, didn't open them.
As the bus made its way through traffic, the man and woman moved on foot to the next stop on the bus route, East 170th Street and Walton Avenue.
Once the bus got there, cops say the woman got on and tossed some sort of liquid in the driver's face. He then stumbled off the bus, where the two set upon him, knocking him to the ground and punching and kicking him before running off, police say.
Get Tri-state area news delivered to your inbox. Sign up for NBC New York's News Headlines newsletter.
The victim, who suffered pain and swelling to her face and body and bruises to her knees was taken to a hospital for treatment.
Police released surveillance of the suspects (above). Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.