Man arrested after going for ‘joy ride’ in Hamilton bus with passengers on board: police

Police say the suspect who allegedly stole a city bus while the driver was on break still made all scheduled stops, posing as the driver.

A man got behind the wheel of a Hamilton city bus and took passengers on a “joy ride” on Tuesday night, according to police.

Investigators say that the driver of the bus pulled over at MacNab terminal to take a break at around 9 p.m. and exited the vehicle.

It is alleged that the suspect then entered the unattended vehicle and began driving away with at least 10 passengers still on board.

Although the suspect did not follow the regular route, he did pull over at bus stops on his path.

“During (the ride) the driver did make all the scheduled along the new route, letting people on and off,” Const. McKenna told CTV News Toronto.

“One person was looking to board the bus at the time, and was turned away because their pass was invalid, and the driver made them pay the actual fare.”

Officers tailed the bus before bringing it to a stop on West 5th Street, at which point the suspect was taken into custody “without incident,” Hamilton police say.

The entire incident lasted about 15 minutes, police say.

“It comes off comically but at the same time it is a really serious matter,” Trevor McKenna said. “The person was driving a full size HSR bus on our roads, there’s pedestrians, there was at least 10 passengers on board at the time, so the person has been charged.”

A 36-year-old man, of no fixed address, has been charged with four offences related the incident. A full list of charges can be found here.