Suspect arrested in fatal shooting of Culver City Bus driver in Mar Vista Thursday

A man suspected of fatally shooting a Culver CityBus driver in Mar Vista has been taken into custody, Los Angeles police said Friday evening, a day after the driver was killed during a dispute over the bus’s route.

The shooting happened around 5:15 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 1, on a Culver CityBus near Mitchell and Centinela avenues, in the Mar Vista neighborhood of Los Angeles. Other accounts placed the scene along Centinela near Washington Boulevard. Although the bus is operated by Culver City, the location is in Los Angeles Police Department jurisdiction. Robbery-Homicide Division detectives are investigating.

LAPD Capt. Eric Eppolito said the passenger appeared intoxicated and argued with the driver over a missed exit or the bus going the wrong direction. Eppolito said the passenger then pulled a handgun from a bag and fired. Two other passengers were on the bus and were not hurt, he said. Paramedics treated the driver at the scene for gunshot wounds — FOX 11 reported two — and took him to a hospital, where he died. The New York Times, citing police, identified him as a 42-year-old man. His name has not been released, pending family notification. Culver City Vice Mayor Bubba Fish confirmed he was a Culver CityBus driver.

The suspect, described earlier as a man in his 40s last seen in a white shirt, left the bus and fled on a bicycle taken from the front rack or on foot. No weapon was recovered at the scene. The bus was equipped with cameras, which detectives were reviewing along with witness statements.

Before 5 p.m. Friday, the LAPD said it had taken into custody a person believed responsible for the killing. Officer Tony Im confirmed the arrest to the Los Angeles Times but declined to give the suspect’s name or other details, saying more would be released later. FOX 11 reported that detectives located and arrested the man Friday evening.

Culver City suspended CityBus service through the weekend so employees could grieve. Mayor Freddy Puza called the shooting a “senseless act of violence” and said the city had lost a member of its team who “made a meaningful difference through that service every day.”