A butcher knife-wielding man tried to slash tires and threatened to stab a bus driver at a Boston transit station Friday before being taken into custody, authorities said.
Police responded quickly to a call about the man at the Forest Hills station. Upon arrival, a struggle ensued and the suspect tried to grab an officer’s gun, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Superintendent Richard Sullivan said.
The officer’s gun went off, but no one was shot or stabbed. It wasn’t made immediately clear who shot the gun.
“This was a violent person armed with a butcher knife,” Sullivan said. “These officers, without hesitation, immediately rushed to the danger while other people were running away from it."
Two transit officers, a Boston police officer and the suspect were injured, Sullivan said.
According to Boston EMS, six people were taken to the hospital from the station, but Sullivan said he wasn't aware of the other two.
The incident drew multiple police cars and ambulances to the station, which includes bus, train and subway stops in the city’s Jamaica Plain neighborhood. The facility's upper busway was shut down around 11:15 a.m., with service rerouted to another section.
A Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority police dispatcher declined to provide information over the phone, and emails sent to MBTA media contacts went unanswered. A Boston Police dispatcher confirmed that city officers were assisting MBTA police.
Online video footage depicted more than a dozen police vehicles and at least two ambulances outside the station. Officers were visible behind yellow police tape, which cordoned off a wide area near the station entrance.
