Two men accused of beating a T bus driver, leading to a bus crash were arrested by Transit police last night.
Felix Garcia, 18, and Michael Baptista, 19, both of Roxbury, were charged with interfering with a bus driver and assault and battery on a public employee, said T spokesman Joe Pesaturo. Garcia is the teen whose foot became pinned by the bus after the crash.
A video of the Monday afternoon incident was recently posted on YouTube.
A group of people can be heard shouting at the driver to back up the bus, but it seemed to be stuck against the Dudley Street building it hit. People asked if anyone had a knife in an attempt to cut Garcia’s shoe off.
Baptista can be seen with ripped pant legs and shouting that his leg has been broken. He hobbled around to the front of the bus where he yelled and cursed at the driver.
Witnesses, police and emergency dispatch calls indicated that the driver asked a group of young men to stop smoking on the crowded Route 15 bus. A verbal argument followed and the driver eventually returned to his seat. That’s when the group followed him, another argument took place and the group began assaulting the driver, which caused the bus to start to roll forward.
Witnesses said the teens tried to flee from the bus and some became stuck. Only minor injuries were reported.
