Man Arrested After School Bus Joy Ride Goes Awry

A 22-year-old man was charged with stealing a school bus after driving it off a Dean Street parking lot and leading the driver and cops on a chase through Fort Greene.

The bus driver told cops he was preparing the buses at a parking lot on Dean Street between Classon and Franklin on May 21 when he saw someone start to drive off with one of the vehicles at about 10:20 a.m. The keys were in the ignition, and apparently someone saw an opportunity, according to a police report.

The driver tried to stop the man, jumping aboard, but the thief kept going, part of the time with the bus driver "half in and half out of the door" until the thief reached over and pulled him inside, the report said.

The pair drove on until the intersection of Clinton and Flushing aves. in Fort Greene, when the thief jumped off. The bus driver followed, chasing the bus-jacker over several fences and back yards.

The chase caused about $2,000 worth of damage to fences and gardens before the cops caught up with the thief and arrested him, police said.