(Scypre.com) – Newly released video footage reveals a confrontation between a bus driver and a passenger in North Carolina that escalated into a violent exchange of gunfire. The incident occurred on a Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) bus near the Charlotte Premium Outlet Mall on May 18.
Upon arriving at the scene, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department discovered two individuals who had been shot—bus driver David Fullard and passenger Omarri Shariff Tobias.
According to Brandon Hunter, a spokesperson for CATS, the altercation began when Tobias requested an unscheduled stop at a bus stop that was not assigned. Fullard denied the request, triggering a two-minute verbal argument between the two.
Subsequently, both individuals brandished weapons. In the video footage, Tobias can be seen approaching Fullard, who is still driving, and both men begin shooting at each other, causing chaos and shattering glass. It remains unclear who fired the first shot. The video further captures Tobias fleeing towards the back of the bus while a bystander in the aisle attempts to crawl away from the gunfire.
Eventually, the bus comes to a halt, allowing one bystander to exit. Fullard reenters the bus, fires additional shots, and then exits through the front door, firing again. Following the incident, both Fullard and Tobias were transported to the hospital.
Tobias sustained life-threatening injuries, while Fullard’s injuries were non-life-threatening. Tobias now faces charges of assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injuries, communicating threats, and carrying a concealed firearm, as stated by the police.
In response to the incident, Fullard was terminated by his employer, RATP Dev. CATS spokesperson Hunter emphasized the importance of de-escalation training for bus operators and suggested that Fullard could have pulled over safely to let Tobias off the bus, thereby diffusing the situation.
He acknowledged that while this incident was tragic, it is not a common occurrence within their system. Brent Cagle, interim CEO of CATS, expressed the organization’s commitment to addressing the issue in collaboration with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department and RATP Dev, who manage their bus operators.