BROOKLYN, N.Y. — An MTA bus driver allegedly stabbed a passenger multiple times during a heated confrontation Friday afternoon after a disagreement over an unauthorized stop on a bus route in Brooklyn, according to the New York Police Department.
The incident occurred around 12:30 p.m. on a southbound B41 bus near Foster Avenue and Flatbush Avenue when the passenger, Quentin Branch, 33, reportedly asked driver Ian Bascombe, 58, to pull over so he could exit, police said. Branch, described by sources as a “known transit offender recidivist,” allegedly became agitated when Bascombe continued driving to find a safe location to stop.
According to police and eyewitness accounts, Branch threatened Bascombe, stating, “I’m going to break your jaw,” before punching him in the left eye. Bascombe, a 20-year veteran of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, then brandished a knife and stabbed Branch in the head and leg during the altercation, authorities said. Branch was taken to Kings County Hospital in stable condition.
Both men were arrested following the incident. Bascombe faces charges including second- and third-degree assault and criminal possession of a weapon, while Branch was charged with harassment and assault. The MTA announced that Bascombe has been withheld from service pending an internal investigation.
“Violence on buses puts New Yorkers at risk and is not acceptable,” said Frank Annicaro, NYC Transit’s senior vice president for buses, in a statement to local media. The incident adds to a series of violent altercations involving MTA employees this year, including a cleaner arrested last week for an alleged stabbing at Atlantic Avenue-Barclays Center.