'He has a hatchet': Man arrested after incident on Greyhound bus

A Saskatchewan man has been arrested, and is facing several charges, after allegedly frightening passengers on a Greyhound bus while wielding a weapon.

Police say a man is in custody after he allegedly brandished what is described as a "large knife" on a Greyhound bus travelling east of Regina on Tuesday. Passengers described the weapon as a hatchet.

Indian Head RCMP were called to Highway 1 between Sintaluta and Wolseley, Sask., where the bus had stopped.

Amy Adams was driving by the stopped bus and was flagged down by a woman who fled from the bus. Adams said she couldn't roll down her windows so she unlocked her door.

"She hopped in the passenger side," said Adams, who said the woman was shaking. "She was in distress. I was wondering more if someone was injured and in need of medical attention. All she said was, 'That gentleman, he has a hatchet.'"

Adams said both she and the traveller were reminded of the case of Tim McLean, who was beheaded while traveling on a Greyhound going east.

• Mother of Tim McLean says Vince Li's absolute discharge is 'a great injustice'
• Tim McLean's mom not surprised Vince Li gets more freedom​

Adams added she did not see the hatchet herself.

Adams said that when she first saw the bus on the highway, she saw a man get into a car and another man walking along the highway with his hood up.

The distressed woman in Adams' car said she was travelling to Portage la Prairie, Man. to see family. Adams said she called the police on her phone, as her new passenger could not locate her own. 

"She was on the bus, towards the back of the bus, this gentleman was making some noises and felt it was disturbing so she moved to the front of the bus," said Adams, relaying what she told the police operator.

"He started getting louder and then someone — she told me — someone yelled 'he's got a hatchet,'" said Adams, which prompted the bus driver to pull over. 

Police say the man was reported as behaving erratically. He had left the bus before the police arrived and was apprehended a short time later.

The man, who is from Consul, Sask., faces five charges, including assault and forcible confinement.

"We have a zero tolerance policy with regard to unruly or aggressive customers, as well as prohibited items such as weapons, firearms, drugs and alcohol," a Greyhound spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

"Should a passenger become unruly while en route, the driver will pull over in a safe location, remove the customer from the bus and contact the local authorities. We fully co-operated with the RCMP who handled the issue."

Police say no one was injured in the incident.