ESCONDIDO, Calif. (KGTV) — An MTS bus driver is recounting the horrifying moments as a man stabbed him repeatedly inside his bus at the Escondido Transit Center.
“It’s so surreal like. It just went 0 to 100 real quick,” said Stephen Jenkins, 29.
From his hospital bed, Jenkins spoke with ABC 10News about the surprise attack that left him with stab wounds throughout his body.
Last Wednesday, just before 9 p.m., Jenkins was parked at the Escondido Transit Center, the last of his passengers preparing to get off the bus.
He says that's when a man stepped onto the bus and demanded a free ride.
“I was trying to be reasonable, offering him a discounted fare,” said Jenkins.
Jenkins said when he offered the man a half-price fare of $1.25, the man became upset.
“He tells me that he's going to **** me up, and then he tells me to give him my wallet,” said Jenkins.
Not wanting to get hurt, Jenkins got up to get his wallet out of a backpack. He says he never saw the man pull out an 8-inch-long screwdriver before he began stabbing him.
“He stabbed me in the back two times and then five times in the chest … I thought I was going to die. It was a really scary moment. I was bleeding out really bad,” said Jenkins.
Jenkins says he was stabbed a total of nine times before the man ran off the bus.
Police later tracked him down behind a bookstore. A knife was recovered near him.
Jenkins was rushed to a hospital with a host of injuries, including a collapsed lung, lacerated liver and a gruesome wrist injury, but remarkably, none of them were life-threatening.
“Grateful. I got very lucky with that,” said Jenkins.
The suspect, 50-year-old Mario Felix, pleaded not guilty to attempted murder and attempted robbery charges on Friday.
Prosecutors say crime involving the local transit system has jumped 65% in the past year. 13% of those were crimes against a transit worker.
“I would like to see justice … I don't think he's safe to be in society,” said Jenkins.
As the legal process moves forward, Jenkins faces months of recovery and rehabilitation.
After he has healed, he's hoping to get back behind the wheel.
“I love my job. I’m not going to have one really bad incident ruin my whole future,” said Jenkins.
Felix faces 65 years to life if convicted on all charges.
Jenkins was released from the hospital on Monday afternoon.
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help him with loss of income and other expenses.
