Man accused of stealing school bus, crashing into 15-20 parked cars in Brooklyn
EAST NEW YORK, Brooklyn (WABC) -- Police are investigating after they say a man stole an unoccupied school bus in East New York and struck 15-20 parked vehicles before he was stopped.
The incident was reported Thursday afternoon around 3 p.m. when the man stole the bus at East 51st Street between Linden Blvd and Lenox Road.
Authorities tracked the bus through multiple precincts, eventually taking the suspect into custody in Brownsville at Jamaica and Sheffield avenues.
Anthony Reyes, 43, was later charged with grand larceny, reckless endangerment, unauthorized use of a vehicle, forgery, criminal possession of stolen property, obstruction of a governmental authority, resisting arrest, leaving the scene of an accident and fleeing an officer in a motor vehicle.
Before he was stopped, Reyes struck multiple vehicles along the way as well as a building on East New York Avenue.
One witness said he struck every single car on a block.
"One of those cars that was right here, there was a lady inside, and if that cop did not take that lady out, she would've been dead by that time," witness Ali Sulimanalmaweri said. "So he pulled her out and he hit the car again, he kept hitting the car so he could run away."
At first witnesses said they feared there were children on the bus, but fortunately that was not the case.
However, countless vehicles were destroyed. One car was even rammed back and forth by the bus with a man inside.
That man, Raymond Johnson, said he doesn't think he was hurt, but the adrenaline hasn't worn off yet.
"He had me banging me back reverse trying to get away, and when he saw he could've pull over he kept pushing forward again," Johnson said.
Police attempted to Taser Reyes but he was only struck with one prong. He was taken to an area hospital.
One officer suffered a minor hand injury and three other people reported minor injuries.
Police say Reyes has at least 12 prior arrests, including robbery.
His last arrest for robbery was in 2017. He was released in March 2020 and is currently on parole until March 2025.
The investigation is ongoing.
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