CHARLOTTE, N.C. — An off-duty security officer was assaulted by a bus passenger in east Charlotte Wednesday night and suffered serious injuries, police say.
Violence from the streets of Charlotte is making its way onto buses and rail lines, leading to safety concerns from CATS operators about the dangers of going to work. It's still unclear why the off-duty security guard confronted the passenger. The confrontation led to a fight, but police haven't said if anyone was arrested.
The incident happened on Briar Creek Road around 7 p.m. According to a police report obtained by WCNC Charlotte, the two people got into a scuffle, fell out of the bus and rolled down an embankment while still fighting. The security guard suffered a head injury during the incident, police say. It's the latest act of violence on Charlotte's public transportation system.
Previous incidents have included a shooting and several stabbings, with one of those suspects scheduled in court Thursday afternoon. In June, two people got into a fight that resulted in a stabbing on the Blue Line in Lower South End. In May, there was a shooting between a driver and a passenger near the Steele Creek premium outlets, and earlier that month, a fight led to a stabbing on the Gold Line street car in Uptown.
The suspect in that case, 49-year-old Robert Watson, was scheduled to face a judge Thursday. He is charged with assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury. The victim and Watson didn't know each other, according to investigators.
Contact Jesse Pierre at jpierrepet@wcnc.com or follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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