Inset: Demetrius Byrd (Miami-Dade County Corrections and Rehabilitation). Background: An intersection in Miami Beach, Fla. (Google Maps).
A Florida man has been arrested after police said he waved a weapon at passengers on a city bus while screaming at them.
Demetrius Byrd, 40, was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon on Monday and booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, where he is being held on $5,000 bond. According to an arrest report reviewed by Law&Crime, police responded to an intersection in Miami Beach, Florida, on Monday morning after receiving reports about a man with a knife threatening people on a Miami-Dade Transit bus.
When police boarded the bus, they spoke to the bus driver, who said she allegedly witnessed Byrd have an altercation with a passenger. She told police that Byrd allegedly waved a knife at the passengers and asked, "Who wants to die today?"
Byrd was found near the bus and searched by police, who said they found a "silver multi-tool" in his shorts. Other officers spoke with the bus driver and a passenger, who said they witnessed the alleged incident. The passenger said he saw Byrd "screaming and yelling" as soon as he boarded the bus. That man told police he tried to talk to Byrd to "possibly calm him down."
When the tone of the conversation escalated, the man said he told Byrd to "shut up," prompting Byrd to allegedly produce his multi-tool and reveal the blade. The man told police that Byrd allegedly asked him "if he wanted to die" while walking toward the man with the blade pointed at him.
Byrd was taken into custody and booked into jail. His next court date was not immediately scheduled.
Local independent news station WPLG reported that Byrd was once a college football star who played for the Louisiana State University Tigers. In 2009, he was drafted by the San Diego Chargers, but never played for the team.