Scottish teen who grabbed coach steering wheel 'at 60mph' jailed for four months
A 'drunk' teenager who grabbed the steering wheel of a bus travelling at 60mph in Scotland has been jailed for four months.
William Duff, who was 19 at the time of the incident, got into a grapple with the bus driver, Lee Buckley, and seized the wheel while it was travelling on the A90 near Glendoick, between Dundee and Perth, on 29 December 2011.
Mr Duff, now 21, was this week sentenced to four months' detention at Perth Sheriff Court, reports the BBC.
The incident occurred on a trip back from Fat Sam's nightclub in Dundee, and the coach was packed with 70 revellers.
The court heard how the coach veered across the dual carriageway after Mr Duff grabbed the wheel.
Driver Mr Buckley managed to regain control by kicking him away with is foot and slamming on the brakes. The coach was then led back to Perth by a police escort.
Mr Buckley told stv.tv: "I noticed someone coming towards me and they sat in the crew seat beside me. I switched on the interior driver's light so the CCTV camera could get a better view in case something happened.
"He started speaking to me. I had never seen him before. He was talking about money but I didn't know what he meant. He was away with it.
"He got up and turned round and said 'I'm going to drive,' grabbed the steering wheel and pulled it down to the left. I managed to get him off quite quick."
When the bus came to a stop, Mr Duff reportedly tried to escape throughout the emergency exit, but was apprehended and charged.
Duff, from Perth, was found guilty of culpably and recklessly endangering the lives of people on a bus by grabbing the steering wheel.
Accoridng to the BBC, Sheriff Michael Fletcher said: "The consequences of your actions - but for the actions of the driver of the bus - could have been very serious indeed.
"There was a very large number of young people on the bus and no doubt most were under the influence of alcohol.
"If that bus had gone off the road or collided with anything else the consequences would have been too terrible to think about."
He added: "I have come to the conclusion that I cannot deal with this any other way than by a custodial sentence."
Mr Duff, from Perth, was found guilty of culpably and recklessly endangering the lives of people on a bus by grabbing the steering wheel.
His solicitor, David Holmes, said Duff was so drunk on the night in question that he did not realise why he hard been arrested.
Related articles
Bus carrying 60 wedding guests topples over in Northern Ireland
Bus driver dies after being trapped under own coach
