13-year-old Syles Ular was fatally stabbed while riding an MTA bus on Staten Island on Friday, October 6th.
Following the incident, another teenager was detained as a potential person of interest, as reported by the police.
The event took place near Littlefield Avenue and Hylan Boulevard in Eltingville. Authorities believe that the violent act might be gang-related.
The altercation began on the bus around 2:30 p.m. Ular got into a dispute with a 14-year-old, suspected to be the assailant, and possibly some other youths.
NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell told reporters, “Witnesses state there was an argument on the bus, a knife was produced, and gang signs were being shown back and forth.”
The suspect stabbed Ular multiple times in the chest with a knife, according to the police.
A 15-year-old eyewitness told the Daily Mail News that he saw the suspect draw a knife, which he initially thought was a toy.
He said, “I saw him take out the knife, and I thought it was a toy. When I saw him stabbing away, I knew it was real.”
Post the attack, the suspect fled from the bus, and a retired NYPD sergeant and a state Department of Environmental Conservation officer apprehended him shortly after being alerted by an on-site witness.
Michael Tambasco, a local resident, shared that the scene inside the bus was distressing, with Ular critically injured.
Police immediately transported Ular in an unmarked vehicle instead of waiting for an ambulance.
Relatives revealed Ular was a student commuting home from Staten Island IS 7. His aunt, Ladrina Sheffield, expressed anguish over the incident, questioning the absence of intervention from adults present on the bus.
She recalled that Ular knew his attacker from school and shared her grief, saying, “This was just senseless. I can’t believe my baby is gone.”
Demetrius Crichlow, Senior Vice President of the NYC Transit Department, mentioned arriving at the scene and speaking with the MTA bus driver.
Crichlow said the driver “Was visibly broken up about what transpired.”
