A 39-YEAR-OLD Strabane man who hijacked a bus in Omagh at the weekend said he ‘wanted to go out with a bang’.
Daniel James Diver, of Evish Square, appeared before Enniskillen Magistrates Court this morning (Monday) following his arrest on Saturday.
Altogether, Diver stands accused of hijacking a 273 Goldliner bus, kidnapping, dangerous driving, failing to stop for police, driving while unfit, aggravated vehicle taking causing injury, possession of a knife and possession of pregabalin.
He is also charged with driving while disqualified, driving without insurance and failing to report and remain at the scene of an accident.
In court, defence counsel Ciaran Roddy said there was no application for bail and noted that Diver had ‘made admissions’ during interview.
A police detective told the court that at 12.45pm on the Beltany Road outside Omagh, Diver approached the driver with a ‘large, non-standard’ knife and said he wanted to take control of the bus.
He ordered the passengers off and when a police car approached with lights illuminated and sirens sounding, Diver – who was then behind the wheel of the bus – drove off, colliding with the car.
During the journey to Strabane, Diver was said to have collided with numerous vehicles and property and also veered across the centre line, forcing oncoming vehicles to take evasive action to avoid collisions.
The detective remarked that the bus driver had tried to keep Diver calm in his driving to avoid further collision and injury.
Later in Strabane, Diver lodged the bus on a wall and police were able to pull him from the vehicle and arrest him.
After being taken to hospital, Diver was interviewed and made admissions to the offences.
He told police that he was suicidal and had planned to take the bus to Derry to drive off a bridge and that he ‘wanted to go out with a bang’.
‘Show off’
He added that he stopped in Strabane to ‘show off’ to his brother.
The detective added that Diver had taken ‘six to eight’ pregabalin tablets, which were also found on him during arrest.
Mr Roddy said that Diver had apologised for his actions during interview and wished to apologise in court.
District Judge Alana McSorley remanded Diver into custody and adjourned the case to Strabane Magistrates Court on October 8 for a further update, where Diver will appear by videolink.
