Sheriff: Army trainee charged after hijacking school bus in South Carolina

This image released by the Richland County, S.C., Sheriff’s Department, shows Jovan Collazo, an Army trainee, who was arrested and charged with dozens of crimes after authorities say he boarded a South Carolina school bus with a gun Thursday, May 6, 2021, and held the driver and elementary students hostage before letting them off the bus. ((Richland County Sheriff’s Department via AP))

An Army trainee has been arrested after authorities say he boarded a South Carolina school bus with a gun and held the driver and elementary school students hostage before letting them off the bus.

Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott says the incident started around 7 a.m. Thursday near Fort Jackson, the U.S. Army’s largest basic training facility.

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Lott says trainee Jovan Collazo “ran off post and escaped,” armed with a rifle.

He then got on a nearby school bus but later let the driver and students off before driving the bus for several miles himself. The sheriff says Collazo was later arrested without incident and will face multiple charges including kidnapping.