A routine bus ride to school on the morning of Thursday, Oct. 24, became anything but routine when the father of a student entered the bus and told his daughter to point out a child who he claimed bullied his daughter.
The man demanded the boy’s phone number when a boy came forward.
Neither the school nor the police received reports of bullying involving the child in question.
The bus driver reported that he told the man he could not get on the bus and asked him to get off, but the man did not comply initially. He reportedly left after about three minutes, during which time, the bus could not continue the route.
All Pea Ridge school buses have a sticker near the door warning that unauthorized entry could result in arrest, according to Rick Neal, school superintendent.
As a result of the investigation, Lance Cameron Ferguson, 51, Pea Ridge, was arrested on Tuesday, Oct. 29, and chargedwith third degree assault, second degree false imprisonment and unauthorized entry of a schoolbus. He was booked into the Benton County Jail. He was released Wednesday, Oct. 30, for $995.
“A man got on the bus, called a boy up front demanding his phone number and accused him of stealing his daughter’s money,” Pea Ridge Police Chief Tim Ledbetter said.
Ferguson entered the bus about 7:20 Thursday, Oct. 24, according to the affidavit from the Prosecutor’s Office.
“It’s our understanding that the bus driver told him he could not get on the bus; that it was illegal,” Ledbetter said, adding that the man retorted that it was illegal for his daughter to be robbed on the bus. “He was told a second time and ignored the requests of the bus driver.”
Police reviewed the video from the bus and interviewed students and school officials.
“His hand is seen in the video pointing … students in the area appear confused … a child gets out of seat and approaches the front of the bus and is seen talking in the direction of the busintruder. He returns to his seat and bus begins to leave. The incident occursfor approximately three minutes,” Ledbetter said. “The driver was unable to continue his route untilthe man left. There were approximately 12 students and one driver held on the bus against their will.”
“I believe in light of events that have transpired over the past several years in our nation, the police department wants to make every effort to ensure the safety of the children whether on school grounds or on a bus, however smallthe incident might seem.
“We want to make it well known that we will pursue incidents that scare or intimidate our children,” Ledbetter said, adding that the father could easily have gone to school officials and filed a complaint about anything that may have happened to his child. He claimed someone stole money from her.
According to witnesses, the child reportedly dropped two dimes which were claimed by another child, Ledbetter said.
“There is no evidence that we’ve found that leads us to believe the little girl was bullied,” Ledbetter said.
Neal said no report was filed with the school abouttheft of money or of the man’s daughter being bullied prior to his boarding the bus.
“Our investigation revealed that he was loud, he was not screaming, but loud and forceful. Police interviewed several children from the bus,” Ledbetter said. “All said they were afraid, that they didn’t know what was happening or know what was going on. The boy who came forward said he was just doing what an adult told him to do, but he was in fear. None of these children knew this man.”
During the investigation, police said they learned that the father later that same day, called a school official and said he did notwant to look for the money any longer and didn’t want school officials to do anything.
As a result of the investigation, the information was turned over to the Benton County Prosecutor’s Office which issued the affidavit for Ferguson’s arrest.
“Would you want your child accosted by an adult entering the bus and demanding for their personal information?” Ledbetter asked. “All the buses are clearly marked that you may not get on the bus - that’s the first law he broke. The second was intimidating this boy to come forward and give his phone number, and naturally, the third, the bus was not able to move on with the route.”
News, Pages 1 on 11/06/2013