Montgomery County Police have released a computer-generated composite of a man who they say stabbed a bus driver at Montgomery Mall bus depot on Jan. 22.
At about 6:15 p.m., the driver of the J3 route stopped at the depot, near the Sears Auto Center to allow passengers to board. A man boarded, but refused to pay the $1.20 fare.
The driver refused to allow the suspect to board without paying and the suspect left the bus. The bus was full, and the driver got off to see if another bus was coming to pick up the overflow customers.
After the driver got off the bus, the suspect attacked the driver from behind, according to police, and the suspect stabbed the driver in the back and cut his face several times before fleeing,
The suspect ran in the direction of the Hecht’s Home Store, although he was not seen entering the mall, say police.
The driver, a 45-year-old male who has worked for Metro for four years, was taken to a hospital where he was treated for non-life threatening injuries. He was released from the hospital early on the morning of Jan. 23.
Police describe the suspect as a black male in his 30s, 5-feet-6 inches tall with a thin build, a mustache and a bruise under his right eye.
At the time of the attack, he was wearing a hat, faded jeans, and a white, buttoned-up shirt with a loosened, dark-colored tie with white, diagonal stripes. He had a yellow-spiral notebook tucked into the waistband of his pants.
Anyone with information about the suspect is asked to call 301-657-0112 or Crime Solvers at 1-800-673-2777. Police are offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and/or indictment of the suspect.
<1b>—Ari Cetron