Miami-Dade man told detectives he stole school bus because "he thought he could get away with it," report says
A Miami Gardens man has been arrested after authorities say he stole a full-sized yellow school bus from a private transportation company and led deputies on a morning pursuit through northwest Miami-Dade before getting trapped in a dead end.
Erick Moore, 23, was taken into custody Thursday morning and faces felony multiple felony charges, such as grand theft of a vehicle, burglary of an unoccupied structure, and fleeing and eluding police, alongside misdemeanor traffic offenses of reckless driving and driving with a suspended license.
According to an arrest report, a representative of Little Angels Bus Service reported on Wednesday that a 2001 yellow International 3000 school bus had been stolen from the company's gated yard at Northwest 72nd Street and 29th Court in Miami-Dade's unincorporated Gladeview area.
Surveillance video reviewed by business operators captured an intruder entering the property and driving off in the vehicle. The owner recognized the man in the recording as Moore and told investigators he had previously taken a bus from the same lot on a prior date, the report said.
Around 6:45 a.m. on Thursday, a Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office detective driving an unmarked patrol car spotted the missing bus heading north near Northwest 52nd Street and Northwest 29th Avenue before turning east onto Northwest 54th Street.
The detective tailed the bus as it turned toward Northwest 27th Avenue. Near Northwest 61st Street, a marked deputy cruiser activated its emergency lights and siren to initiate a traffic stop, but Moore refused to pull over and continued driving, according to the report.
Deputies deactivated their emergency sirens and trailed the bus at a safe distance as it headed toward Northwest 22nd Avenue and Northwest 75th Street, where another stop was attempted.
Moore fled a second time before turning onto Northwest 73rd Terrace near Northwest 24th Avenue, where the bus struck a dead end, leaving the vehicle trapped, according to the report.
Deputies swarmed the bus and arrested Moore, who was the vehicle's sole occupant. A driver's license records check revealed Moore's license had been suspended since August 2024 for failure to pay financial obligations.
When Moore was transported to the MDSO station for an interrogation, the report said that he initially claimed that another man threatened to kill his family unless he stole the bus for parts. However, when detectives pressed him on why he had kept the bus driving around the area for a full 24 hours, Moore admitted he took it simply because he thought he could get away with it, investigators wrote in the arrest report.
Moore appeared in bond court on Friday, where the judge ordered him to stay away from the Little Angels Bus Service. His total bond was set at $5500.