Atlanta Transit Bus Hijacking Leaves One Person Dead

One Person Dead After A Man Took An Atlanta Transit Bus Hostage

Atlanta transit bus hijacking has left one person dead after they were shot and killed during a hostage situation.

Joseph Grier held the bus driver at gunpoint and forced them to drive throughout the city, leading police on a high-speed chase across two counties, per ABC News.

Police claim the 39-year-old bus hijacker was on the scene of a mass shooting that took place earlier in the day in Downtown Atlanta. While Joseph is not accused of being involved in the mass shooting that injured 4 people, he was caught on the scene by WSB-TV cameras seemingly arguing with someone.

Bus hijacking in Georgia pic.twitter.com/LSYBybdPJ6

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According to one of the reporters who spoke with Grier on the scene of the mass shooting, he was “loud and belligerent”.

Joseph then reportedly got on the Gwinnett County transit bus from the downtown area, but while on the bus he got embroiled in a heated exchange with a fellow passenger, Ernest Byrd.

Ernest pulled out a gun on Grier, who managed to take the firearm from Ernest and began to threaten other passengers with the gun. Subsequently, he reportedly shot Ernest in the leg with his own gun and told the bus driver to keep driving.

This resulted in a high-speed chase which spanned across Gwinnett County and DeKalb County. Eventually, authorities were able to get the bus to stop after they burst the tires and shot at the bus engine.

Ernest unfortunately died from his injuries at the local hospital, while the rest of the passengers were able to alight from the bus in good condition. The identity of the driver is currently unknown.

Grier is reportedly facing multiple charges, including murder and kidnapping.