A Chicago bus driver was forced to crawl out of a window and flee for her life after police say a knife-wielding passenger hijacked her CTA bus during a terrifying overnight ordeal that sent the vehicle miles off route.
Authorities said the suspect boarded a southbound No. 53 CTA bus shortly before 2:40 a.m. Wednesday in the Belmont Gardens neighborhood.
According to police, the man suddenly pulled out a knife and ordered the 57-year-old driver not to stop the bus.
The driver quietly triggered a silent alarm while continuing to operate the vehicle.
As the bus rolled through Chicago streets, union officials later described what they saw on surveillance footage.
“She could see him through the mirror, what he was doing, jabbing with the knife like he was going to stab her,” Michelle Townsend of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 241 told WLS-TV.
Townsend said the suspect repeatedly made stabbing motions where the driver could see them reflected in the mirror.
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Police said the bus traveled roughly 6.5 miles after leaving its regular route.
After a CTA supervisor located the vehicle near North Clark Street, the driver made her move.
Authorities said she escaped through a window while the suspect remained on the bus.
The man eventually got off and fled into Washington Park.
Police later tracked him down near East Chestnut Street and took him into custody. Officials said no injuries were reported.
Investigators have not publicly explained what the suspect wanted. Charges remain pending.
Elsewhere in Canada, passengers riding a Hamilton city bus found themselves in the middle of another bizarre hijacking after police say a random man slipped behind the wheel and began driving the route himself.
Authorities said the incident began around 9 p.m. Tuesday when the legitimate Hamilton Street Railway driver briefly stepped away from the bus during a break.
Moments later, the bus started moving again. But police said the person driving was not the assigned operator.
According to investigators, the unauthorized 36-year-old suspect somehow managed to operate the bus convincingly enough that several passengers initially remained onboard.
Police said the man drove the route for nearly four miles while carrying about 10 riders.
Authorities added that the suspect regularly stopped to pick up and drop off passengers as though he were actually working the route.
At one point, officials claimed he even refused to allow a rider onboard because the person’s bus pass had expired.
The strange ride reportedly became more chaotic after the imposter driver started veering away from the normal route.
Passengers allegedly had to help direct him back toward the proper streets.
“He took the bus off route,” Hamilton Police spokesman Trevor McKenna told The New York Times. “He started going down side streets. At one point, one of the passengers had to supply directions.”
Police said officers followed behind the bus rather than immediately attempting a dangerous stop.
“We didn’t know if there was some ill will,” McKenna said while explaining the department’s cautious approach.
Authorities eventually stopped the vehicle safely and arrested the suspect.
Police said the man faces charges including theft and obstruction.
Investigators also noted he appeared to have “no fixed address” and may have a mental health condition.
Despite the bizarre circumstances, McKenna acknowledged the suspect largely obeyed traffic laws during the unauthorized ride.
“He was playing by the rules,” McKenna said. “I guess you could say he was a good sport.”
In North Carolina, another hijacking turned deadly after authorities say a convicted killer stole an ambulance at gunpoint before fatally shooting a 74-year-old woman.
Cheyenne Woods, 36, was arrested after police said he called emergency services to a home in Red Springs on a Saturday afternoon.
According to the Robeson County Sheriff’s Office, paramedics arrived and loaded Woods into the ambulance before the situation suddenly escalated.
Investigators said Woods pulled out a gun, threatened first responders and stole the ambulance.
Police said Woods later crashed the emergency vehicle into another car driven by Marie Locklear.
Authorities alleged Woods then shot Locklear before fleeing the scene. Locklear later died at a hospital.
Investigators quickly captured Woods near the shooting scene.
Robeson County Sheriff Burnis Wilkins called the case a “senseless act of murder committed by a repeat violent felon whose criminal history includes a prior murder conviction.”
Wilkins added that Woods “demonstrated time and again a complete disregard for human life and the rule of law.”
According to WRAL, Woods previously pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in connection with a 2010 shooting.
He was sentenced to prison in 2017 but was released in 2022 after serving roughly five years.
Authorities said Woods also had prior convictions tied to an earlier armed robbery case.
Prosecutors charged Woods with first-degree murder, robbery with a dangerous weapon, assault on EMS personnel and multiple firearms offenses.
Authorities later added more charges, including kidnapping and assault with a deadly weapon.
Meanwhile in California earlier this year, another ambulance theft ended with a screaming half-dressed suspect crashing the emergency vehicle after a 10-mile pursuit.
Authorities said the suspect stole the ambulance while paramedics responded to a fatal stabbing outside the Downey City Library.
Police later stressed the ambulance suspect had nothing to do with the homicide investigation.
Video obtained by KTLA captured officers chasing the ambulance through city streets while witnesses shouted in disbelief.
“He’s stealing the ambulance,” one woman yelled as sirens blared.
The pursuit ended after the suspect crashed into a parked vehicle in Alhambra.
Police video later showed officers arresting the man while his pants hung around his ankles.
Witness Alan Kwong told KABC the suspect continued screaming even after officers placed him inside a police SUV.
“When I came back, he was still screaming,” Kwong said. “He’s still screaming in the car.”
