Man, 19, in Hospital After Being Hit, Stabbed on Bus
A 19-year-old man who was punched and stabbed in an argument over a bus seat remained hospitalized in stable condition Tuesday, Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies in Santa Clarita said.
The squabble, which occurred Monday on a Santa Clarita Transit bus in Newhall, turned violent when a 22-year-old Canyon Country man hit and stabbed a fellow passenger, deputies said.
Witnesses told police that Raymond Diaz Jr. began arguing with Matthew Taylor of Canyon Country. After looking over at a group of friends on the bus, Diaz attacked and stabbed Taylor twice in the upper body, Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Sgt. Howard Fairchild said.
When the bus driver pulled over at the intersection of Lyons Avenue and Orchard Village Road after realizing what was happening, Diaz got off the bus and fled, Fairchild said.
Diaz was later found and arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, Fairchild said. He is being held at the Santa Clarita sheriff’s station in lieu of $30,000 bail.
Deputies said they are also looking for four or five other people who allegedly punched the victim. A video from the bus’ recording system will be studied to help identify others involved.
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