A bus driver is being hailed as a hero after surveillance video surfaced of her courageously saving an 80-year-old woman from a vicious attack on a bus.
A bus driver is being hailed as a hero after surveillance video surfaced of her courageously saving an 80-year-old woman from a vicious attack on a bus in Washington state.
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In the video provided by the Port Angeles Police Department of the Saturday incident, Riley E. White, a 59-year-old man, rose from his seat and suddenly delivered a sharp kick to 80-year old woman sitting across from him.
“She told me that she knows suspect White a little bit,” Port Angeles Police Corporal David Dombrowski wrote in his incident report.
According to a report 80-year-old Angeline Olsen’s son later filed, White had allegedly waited outside their home six months ago, and placed his hand on Olsen’s leg during the visit.
Dombrowski wrote in his report that the woman’s nephew "was convinced White had wanted to 'have his way with her' and thought White was pursuing her."
When Olsen arrived on the bus earlier that week, she had asked to sit next to White, who was already on the bus when she boarded, but he pointed to a seat across from him, asking her to sit there instead, the incident report stated.
Moments later, surveillance footage captured White suddenly rising out of his seat and kicking Olsen in the face.
“He started punching her and slamming her head into the floor,” reported Corporal Dombrowski of the Clallam County Sheriff's Office to InsideEdition.com.
After hearing Olsen’s screams, bus driver Joy Crummett immediately pulled the bus over and attempted to intervene.
However, the alleged attacker turned towards Crummett, and began choking her.
The suspect then reportedly yelled at the driver, "let go or I’m going to rip your throat out," authorities told InsideEdition.com.
Crummett distracted the suspect long enough to open the back doors and allow four other passengers to escape and call 911.
The bloodied victim was pushed off the bus by the suspect and the driver narrowly escaped just as the doors closed.
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Between the suspect’s alleged attacks on the two women, the quick-thinking driver was able to cut the battery on the bus to prevent the man from driving away, trapping him there until authorities arrived.
The suspect’s motive behind his bizarre actions is still in question, but according to a police report, White was reported as saying “... I don’t know how I got on the bus...”
Both female victims have reportedly been released from the hospital after suffering what police call a “substantial amount of pain.”
Police and community members are praising Crummett for her heroic, life-saving actions that day.
“She did a marvelous job. She was exceptional; always placing the safety of her passengers ahead of herself,” said the Clallam police department.
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