A terrified bus driver has spoken of his terror as violent thugs ordered him to abandon the vehicle by threatening to murder him.
Dublin Bus operator Salies Tupsy revealed: "They opened the door and said, ‘Get out or we'll kill you’." His horrific ordeal on Thursday unfolded as a violent mob set the bus alight in a siege of Dublin city centre.
The orchestrated attack involved two motorbike riders deliberately pulling in front of the vehicle. Salies said: "Two young lads pulled in front of the bus and stopped me. They started to be aggressive, very aggressive.
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"They banged on the windscreen and the sidedoor. They opened the front door and central door and started to scream.
"They started to punch me for no reason. I was still talking to them, saying, ‘What’s happened?’ They threw two punches. I was terrified. I don’t know what to say. I just kept talking to them.
"They went out and I closed both the doors. I tried to call the controller, but there was no time because there was a lot around.
"Around 10 guys came in front of the windscreen and a tall guy came and started to bang the windscreen. He said, ‘Get out now, get out of the cab now, get out of the bus now’. I still wanted to know what had happened.
"The 10 guys came to the side door and opened it again. They said, 'Get out or we’ll kill you'." He added on Newstalk radio: "So I got out of my cab and said, 'Listen guys, I’m out, I’m out.'
"I was lucky. I took my bag and a tall guy held me and he walked me around the bus."
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