Army Trainee Hijacks School Bus

Today, police arrested a Fort Jackson trainee after he took over a school bus full of children. The suspect was armed with an issued rifle, but did not harm anyone on board. Fort Jackson officials made the following statement:“This was a failure in our accountability procedures that we truly regret and are apologetic to our community. We are thankful for the fast actions of RCSD (Richland County Sheriff Department) and the local community to assist in the apprehension of the individual.”The suspect eventually let the children and the bus driver out. He then drove the bus for another mile before abandoning it, and fleeing on foot.Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott said, “He left the rifle on the bus and went through neighborhoods trying to get rides, trying to get clothes and made his way to Percival and 77 where citizens and deputies spotted him and he was arrested without incident.” School officials have stated counseling will be available to the elementary school children.“You can just imagine they were scared to death,” Sheriff Lott stated. “I’ll give the bus driver credit, he kept his cool.”

Update on the trainee:

During a press conference, @fortjackson officials said the suspect escaped during morning personal hygiene time. The trainee hopped a fence this morning, but now is in police custody. Furthermore, the individual was 23 years old, and was in his third week of training.

They confirmed the suspect had a rifle. However, they insisted he did not have any ammunition. The Army is also withholding his identity until his next of kin has been notified. Although, they stated he was a "quite" person from New Jersey, and most likely was "just trying to go home."

The trainee is facing multiple charges, both military and civilian counts. These might include, unauthorized absence, theft of government property, kidnapping, grand theft auto, and several others.

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