Bus driver beaten by passengers refusing to wear face masks left brain-dead
A French bus driver was savagely beaten by a group of passengers who refused to wear face masks — an attack that left him brain-dead, according to reports.
Philippe Monguillot, 58, confronted the passengers who were not complying with a rule that requires face masks on public transportation when they boarded without tickets around 7 p.m. Sunday in Bayonne, French outlet Le Parisien reported.
“They just assumed they could all get on and do what they want, but the driver had to do his job,” a law enforcement source told the Daily Mail reported.
He was dragged off the bus onto the platform, where he was kicked and beaten by the group before they escaped, according to the reports.
“When he stood up to them, a very unpleasant argument developed, and voices were raised, and then the driver was attacked when everybody spilled out onto the bus platform,” the source told the outlet.
Monguillot was left unconscious and brought to the hospital, where he was determined to be brain-dead, Le Parisien reported.
His wife, Veronique, said the couple’s lives have been “destroyed” by the violent attack.
“He can’t leave us like this, he was going to be 59 years old soon,” she told Le Parisien. “No, you don’t do this over a bus ticket. You don’t kill for free like this.”
Five people face charges in connection with the grisly assault, but their identities haven’t been released, the outlet reported.
Bayonne Mayor Claude Olive condemned the attack as “barbaric” and said the city was working to improve safety for bus drivers.
“Philippe was a wonderful person who should have been protected,” Olive said.
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