24 May 2024 , 22:11
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A woman claimed she was hit as she "shielded" elderly passengers on a bus from a man who allegedly went on a rampage in Birmingham.
Marie Lawrence said she was on the number 24 service on Highfield Lane, Quinton, when she claims a man without shoes got on and didn't pay before she then heard someone say he had taken their phone.
The 46-year-old said the man then got off the bus and "tried to take a shopping trolley off an OAP couple before banging the door of another property". She claims the man then jumped back on the bus and she was allegedly "pushed and punched" as she tried to protect senior passengers.
Police were called to the scene and arrested a 28-year-old man on suspicion of assault. The mother-of-five said: "I was coming back from Harborne and we were on Highfield Lane when all of a sudden a man came on the bus. He didn't pay, he just said 'beep' loudly, he had no shoes on but had socks on and ran upstairs.
"I heard 'he's took my phone, stop the bus'. The bus then stopped. When he got off the bus there were elderly people coming out of their house and he tried to take their shopping trolley off them. When he failed, he went to a second house and barged the door.
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"He threw the bin on the car which smashed the window. The bus driver was calling the police and I told him to lock the doors so he couldn't get back on but he came through the emergency exit. He confronted me and said 'sit the f*** down. I was shielding the elderly passengers and got hit myself."
The man went away before allegedly causing further mayhem on Highfield Lane. Ms Lawrence got off the bus when she heard sirens. She told BirminghamLive: "He needed help. I'm fine, I'm just a bit sore."
A spokesman from West Midlands Police said: "We were called to reports that a man was causing a disorder on Highfield Lane, Quinton just after 12.30pm today. Officers attended and arrested a 28-year-old man on suspicion of assault. He was taken to hospital for a health check before being placed in custody."