UK police have arrested a man who dyed his hair in an apparent attempt to escape arrest after racially abusing a Muslim bus driver in the London borough of Hillingdon.
A shocking video showing the man, who had grey hair, spitting at the driver, punching the driver's cabin and hurling racist slurs, was posted on social media and was widely shared online, including by a former police officer.
According Daily ExpressScotland Yard said on Friday that officers believed the shooting took place at a bus stop in Coldharbour Lane, Hayes, earlier this week.
The Metropolitan Police's Roads and Transport Command has launched an investigation and condemned all such abuses in the capital.
A spokeswoman for the force said: “Detectives from Roads and Transport Command worked with local officers to carry out an urgent investigation following this incident.
“Despite dyeing his hair to alter his appearance, a suspect was identified and arrested on suspicion of racially aggravated assault by beating.”
Rosie Trew, director of bus service delivery at Transport for London (TfL), had said Daily Express“We are shocked and appalled to see this video of abuse towards one of our colleagues. We will not tolerate this behaviour.”
The alleged racist attack comes after British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's crackdown on far-right rioters and demonstrations by anti-racist protesters.
In addition, figures showed that assaults on TfL staff rose by 10% year-on-year in 2023.
Between January 2022 and June 2023, there were 638 cases of physical abuse against bus drivers, according to figures cited by Pay TV.
