WASHINGTON — On Friday, Metro Transit Police (MTPD) arrested two adults for assaulting and pushing a woman off a W4 Metrobus on Monday.
The two suspects, 27-year old Emoni Hubbard of Southeast DC and 35-year old Terry Barnes of Wilson, North Carolina were taken into custody without incident, MTPD said.
Police said the two suspects are among eight individuals believed to have taken part in the attack, including juveniles.
MTPD said video from bus surveillance cameras helped detectives to identify the suspects. Police also used video that was recorded by a rider. That video went viral earlier this week.
Police started investigating the attack after that witness video surfaced online.
The woman who recorded the video told WUSA9 earlier this week: "The only way I knew to help was to record it because I knew I didn't want to put my babies in no type of harm."
The victim in this case told police she got into a verbal altercation with a group of juveniles around 4 p.m. Monday, after boarding the W4 Metrobus and asking them to stop cursing. The altercation escalated and the group began throwing objects at her before physically pushing her off the bus at one of the stops.
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“I appreciate the quick work of MTPD in arresting the two adults involved in this reprehensible and unacceptable act on a Metrobus earlier this week,” said Metro General Manager/CEO Randy Clarke. “I personally called the victim to apologize for what happened. This type of behavior cannot be tolerated on Metro or anywhere. We need the help of partners, guardians, parents, schools and community leaders to prevent this type of behavior.”
Clarke, who is just three months into his tenure as Metro GM, has said that he plans to make service improvements on Metrorail and Metrobus a priority. In the three months he has also been active on twitter, addressing safety concerns on buses, trains and in stations.
When announcing the two arrests Friday Metro released a statement on bus drivers saying: "In the event of an incident jeopardizing safety, Metrobus operators can stop where it is safe to do so and use an onboard system to send an alarm and contact the Bus Operations Control Center for assistance from a supervisor or Transit Police. An internal investigation by Metro determined that the bus operator did not follow proper procedures during this incident, and appropriate administrative action will be taken"
Additionally, a bulletin reminding all Metrobus operators of protocols for onboard disturbances was circulated this week. MTPD is also stepping up patrols on the W4 as part of its ongoing initiative to increase officer availability and visibility throughout the bus and rail system.
Anyone who experiences or witnesses unlawful behavior is encouraged to contact MTPD immediately by calling 202-962-2121, texting MyMTPD (696873), or calling 911.
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