Greyhound bus passenger armed with knife killed by Atlanta police

A Greyhound bus passenger who was armed with a knife was fatally shot by officers with the Atlanta Police Department this week.

The Police Shooting

The incident occurred just after 1 a.m. local time on Thursday on Interstate 75, south of downtown Atlanta. Police reported that officers were responding to an initial call about a stabbing on a Greyhound bus.

According to police, the Greyhound bus was destined to travel to Florida but was stopped on a popular freeway in Atlanta.

Police said officers repeatedly tried to disarm the man, but he persisted in walking into the southbound lanes of Interstate 75, stepping into the paths of oncoming cars and trucks.

During a press briefing on Thursday, Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum explained that officers attempted to speak to the suspect before the shooting. Officers also attempted to use stun guns on the suspect.

“What then played out was a protracted effort to de-escalate the situation,” Schierbaum said.

The man refused to comply with orders to drop the knife and “moved toward officers aggressively,” according to a police statement. In response, five officers opened fire. He was later pronounced dead at Grady Memorial Hospital, police said.

Police confirmed that no officers or motorists on the freeway were injured during the incident.

According to police, the man who was stabbed on the Greyhound bus declined to be transported to a nearby hospital. Instead, his injuries were treated at the scene, police said.

According to WRDW-TV, the Atlanta Police Department said the officers who fatally shot the suspect have been placed on administrative leave. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is currently handling the case, WRDW-TV reported.

Who Is the Suspect?

Police identified the man as a 39-year-old white male who had boarded the Greyhound bus in Atlanta and had just disembarked when officers arrived on the scene.

Police have yet to provide any further information on the identity of the suspect or any possible motive for possessing the knife.

Officers arriving at the scene discovered that a passenger on the bus had been stabbed in the hand but was able to resume the Greyhound journey to Florida after interviews were conducted, according to Schierbaum. Passengers also provided police with cellphone videos they had captured of the man, he added.

“This is never the outcome the Atlanta Police Department wants,” Schierbaum said. “We want there to be safe and peaceful resolutions to all these encounters, and I think the actions of the officers from the time they were dispatched until weapons had to be discharged shows that this was not their desire either.”

This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.