COLUMBIA, S.C. — An Army recruit accused of hijacking a school bus full of children in Columbia has waived his right to a bond hearing and will next go before a judge later this month.
Jovan Collazo, 23, of New Jersey was scheduled to make his first court appearance Friday at the Richland County Detention Center, where he's been held since his arrest Thursday morning. But the public defender's office notified the court before the proceeding began that he declined to appear, which is his right.
The suspect's next court appearance is set for May 28.
Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott said Collazo ran away his barrack at Fort Jackson early Thursday morning. Ft. Jackson officials said Collazo was a trainee who was only in his third week there, having arrived in mid-April.
Post officials say Collazo took his M4 military rifle with him and jumped a fence during what was supposed to be personal hygiene time. Lott said around 7 a.m., the recruit went to an area near Interstate 77 and Percival Road to flag down a driver to take him away from the area. When that didn't work, the sheriff said, Collazo walked over to a bus stop at Eagle Park Road and Percival Road, where a group of students were boarding the bus to go to Forest Lake Elementary in Richland School District Two. A total of 18 children and a driver were aboard.
Lott said after the students were on, Collazo ran up the steps of the bus and began demanding for the driver to take him to a nearby town. Lott said he told the driver he didn't want to hurt anyone, but needed him to do as he asked. Deputies released publicly a segment of a recording made by a camera on the bus, where Lott said Collazo can be heard yelling instructions and pointing his rifle at the bus driver. The sheriff said the suspect also pointed a gun at the children, although that moment was not part of the video he disclosed.
Fort Jackson's commander, Brig. Gen. Milford Beagle Jr., clarified that the weapon wasn't loaded, since trainees at that stage don't have access to ammunition.
Lott said eventually, the trainee became frustrated when the children started asking him questions, including "are you in the Army?" and "are you going to hurt the bus driver?" Lott said Collazo then asked the bus driver and students to get off the bus.
The whole ordeal situation aboard the bus lasted for six minutes. At least one of the children was able to call one of his parents while on the bus, and the parent notified law enforcement.
A woman driving by spotted the children and the driver standing on the side of the road and said the driver was attempting to comfort the students after the incident. She pulled over to assist.
Sheriff Lott praised the driver, calling him a "hero" for remaining calm throughout the ordeal.
Investigators say Collazo then tried to drive the bus himself for about a mile but gave up because he wasn't familiar with the controls. Officers say he got off the bus, leaving his rifle behind. He's accused of then running to nearby homes in search of clothes. It was at this point that deputies caught up to him and took him into custody.
Beagle said it's his belief that the soldier--who's from New Jersey-- was just trying to get home, and didn't intend harm, but said there was a potential for things to be much worse. He apologized to the public for the incident and said there was a failure in their protocol and promised a further investigation.