Man who hijacked NYC bus with BB gun arraigned; bail set at $500K

Oct. 29 (UPI) -- The man who hijacked an MTA bus in New York City on Thursday was arraigned Saturday in a Queens criminal court.

Dwayne Gaddy, 44, was hit with charges including grand larceny, robbery, assault and reckless endangerment after he commandeered a Q4 bus on Linden Boulevard in the Cambria Heights neighborhood around 7:30 a.m. on Thursday, the New York Daily News reported.

Judge Eugene Guarino also set his bail at $500,000 cash, $1,500,000 bond and $500,000 partially secured bond, according to the news outlet.

NYPD officials said in a televised press conference that Gaddy ran in front of the bus with what appeared to be a firearm in his hand and boarded the bus. The bus driver opened the doors for all the passengers to exit.

"Once onboard the bus, the male made statements that he was being chased and directed the bus driver to continue driving," said Deputy Chief John Clune.

The bus driver later jumped out of the driver's side bus window and Gaddy attempted to gain control of the bus, which continued down Linden Boulevard until it hit a utility pole and came to a stop.

He exited the bus and was arrested by responding officers. Gaddy and the bus driver were both taken to area hospitals and were treated for minor injuries.

Police recovered the BB gun on the bus, which was described as an "imitation pistol."Officials told the Daily News that there were around 30 people on the bus at the time.

In a criminal complaint obtained by the Daily News, police said Gaddy allegedly told them that he did not pull a gun on anyone and told the bus driver that it was not a real firearm.

"He jumped out of the [expletive] window," Gaddy allegedly said, according to the criminal complaint. "He had no reason to be scared."