Three masked attackers are being pursued by Prince George’s County Police after they jumped onto a school bus and tried to shoot the last student on board.
The assault took place in Oxon Hill, Maryland, at around 4:55 p.m. Monday.
After the other students departed the bus at Iverson Street and Sutler Drive, the three masked individuals, believed to be juveniles, rushed on board to confront the last student remaining.
At least one of the trio was armed. A handgun is visible in pictures of the three released by the police Thursday.
A gun was fired at the victim three times, but the piece malfunctioned.
After the weapon failed, the trio beat the victim, unnamed by law enforcement, and exited the bus. The victim suffered minor injuries from the incident. The bus driver and a bus aide, who witnessed the attack, were unharmed.
The Prince George’s County Police Department is investigating the incident and has offered an unspecified cash reward in connection to the case. Anyone with information is asked to call 301-749-5064.
“This was an attempted murder, plain and simple. Call it what it is,” Martin Diggs, president of the ACE-AFSCME Local 2250 union that represents Prince George’s County bus drivers, told WJLA-TV, a local ABC affiliate.
The victim’s mother, who went unnamed, had choice words for the perpetrators.
“They tried to kill my son three times and they failed. And you know what I would say to them? You are cowards. You’re gonna forever be a coward. You’re not gonna have any good luck. And you will get caught,” the relieved and aggrieved mother told Fox TV station WTTG.
In a statement, Prince George’s County Public Schools said, “We are horrified by this incident and grateful that no lives were lost.”
