A man was tasered and pepper sprayed twice after he allegedly tried to hijack a bus carrying 40 elderly passengers and drive it away from the depot.
Emergency services rushed to the terminal on Franklin Street in Adelaide’s CBD after an intoxicated man boarded the bus at around 5.45am on Saturday.
South Australia Police said the 28-year-old man was in an agitated state in the driver’s seat of the bus when they arrived and repeatedly refused to leave the vehicle.
When police tried to remove him from the driver’s seat, two officers were reportedly repeatedly punched in the head, police said in a statement.
Witnesses have since said the man tried to grab a female officer’s gun during the altercation.
“Police used capsicum spray to subdue the man but were unsuccessful and he continued to attempt to drive the bus,” police said.
‘Officers attended the scene to assist and a third member was kicked in the head and suffered a split lip.’
A police dog was called to remove the man from the bus but he was also reportedly attacked, while his handler was reportedly punched in the face.
A number of police officers were injured following the incident in Adelaide on Saturday (paramedics and police pictured at the Franklin Street terminal)
“Capsicum spray was used on the man a second time and he was successfully removed from the bus and arrested,” police said.
The man was taken to hospital for medical treatment.
He is expected to be charged with four counts of assault on an emergency worker, attempted illegal use and resisting arrest.
Two officers were also taken to hospital after one suffered an eye injury and a second a head injury. No passengers on the bus were injured.
Pastor Peggy Renata said she feared there would have been fatalities if the police had not been there.
“We had a bus full of elderly people about to leave Adelaide and a [reportedly] mentally ill man on the bus who looked completely naked,” she said.
“A very violent brawl broke out on the bus … the police officers who entered the bus were violently attacked.”
A witness claimed she saw a 28-year-old try to grab a gun from a female police officer
She said one officer thought her jaw was completely broken and another officer had gouged his eyes out, leaving him unable to move.
Steven Egel, 67, said passengers thought the man was going to put the bus in gear and drive away from the terminal.
“(It was) pretty bad. I jumped up and tried to help. “I grabbed him and grabbed his arm to get him back and stop him,” he said.
Witnesses said the man repeatedly said he wanted to go to Geelong and became agitated when asked to leave the bus.
They said older passengers were gagging from the pepper spray used by police.