Suspected bus hijacker faces a dozen charges as shooting victim’s family, friends mourn

The suspect in the fatal shooting of a Metro rider during a bus hijacking in South Los Angeles has been charged with a dozen crimes and could face up to 90 years in prison, prosecutors said.

The family of the man killed during the incident last week honored his memory over the weekend and called for reforms to the system to protect passengers.

Anthony Rivera, 48, was on his way home from his night shift as a parking attendant at Dodger Stadium when a man with a gun boarded the bus about 12:45 a.m. Wednesday and shot him.

The alleged gunman, 51-year-old Lamont Campbell, held the bus driver, Rivera and another passenger hostage for more than an hour, according to authorities. Police chased the bus around downtown before a SWAT team stormed it and arrested Campbell. There were no other serious injuries.

On Sunday, friends and family met at a park in Rosemead to honor Rivera.

“We demand more safety for passengers on those buses because what happened to him was an event that should have been preventable,” Rivera’s cousin Marylou Mulero told news station KTTV-TV. She added that he was a “great man, and he did not deserve to go the way he did.”

Campbell was charged Monday with 12 counts, including murder, carjacking, kidnapping during a carjacking, assault with a semiautomatic handgun, attempted murder, and robbery.

Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. George Gascón said during a news conference Monday that Campbell had an extensive criminal record. Gascón condemned the violence on the region’s public transportation system.

“The actions of a few should never threaten the safety and security of thousands who will depend on this essential service,” Gascón said before directing his comments to the general public who use public transportation. “I know that you may be experiencing increased fear as a result of the many reports regarding violence in Metro. Know that I see you, I hear you, and I will do everything that I can to ensure your safety.”

If convicted of his crimes, Campbell would face up to 90 years in prison, according to officials.

County Supervisor Janice Hahn said that if Campbell is “found guilty, he will spend the rest of his life in prison for the pain and suffering that he caused.”

Hahn, who also chairs the Metro Board, said “Campbell’s hijacking of a Metro bus and murder of a passenger just trying to get home from work sent shock waves through the city.”

Officials offered their condolences to Rivera’s family and commended bus driver Dennis Contreras, who drove at gunpoint until police managed to disable the vehicle and arrest Campbell.

The official motive behind the hijacking has not be revealed, but Gascón confirmed that Campbell was on the bus for 13 minutes before he shot Rivera and hijacked the bus.

Police sources who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the ongoing investigation said Rivera was killed during an attempted robbery.

At the beginning of the hijacking, calls flooded in to 911 dispatchers as the bus driver activated a panic button that alerted police and triggered emergency messages on the exterior of the bus. The bus had been recently equipped with a barrier that allowed the driver to maintain control of the vehicle, a safety measure that officials said likely helped prevent further tragedy. Such barriers are expected to be installed on all Metro buses by the end of the year.

City leaders acknowledged the hijacking as an example of the challenges they face in keeping passengers safe amid a series of violent incidents on Los Angeles’ public transit systems. Just four months ago, Mayor Karen Bass called for beefed-up security on transit lines following a rash of violent clashes.

Bass acknowledged the hijacking at a news conference last week, saying the city would explore new ways to detect weapons and protect both riders and drivers on public transit.

“I want to say unequivocally that what happened ... will not be tolerated. It has no place in Los Angeles and the individual who was arrested must be held fully accountable,” Bass said.

At Sunday’s event honoring Rivera, some of his family wore Dodgers jerseys and others wore black T-shirts with a picture of him in his high school ROTC uniform standing next to his mother, Teresa Flores.

“I say, ‘Why, God, why?’” Flores said while surrounded by her family, news station KABC-TV reported.

“I just miss him dearly,” she said. “There’s so much I want to say and I just can’t. I’m just dumbfounded they took my son. ... He’ll always be with me, he’s my heart.”

Family members said Rivera was heading home after working at Dodger Stadium.

“All he wanted to do was just get home safely, but he never made it home,” Rivera’s cousin Sarah Beck told the news station. The family have started an online fundraiser to help pay for funeral expenses.

Elizabeth Mulero, 58, is 10 years older than her cousin and remembers when he came home from the hospital as a newborn.

“The first day he came home I held him, I fed him,” Mulero told The Times. “I just miss him terribly.”

She described Rivera growing into a big boy and a big man; she described him as a “teddy bear.” Rivera was cordial, always apologizing to his family for slamming a door too hard, she said. He loved to sing karaoke and watch comic book movies and the Dodgers. Although he wasn’t a big fan of sports, he was proud when he got a job working as a parking lot attendant, because his entire family are Dodgers fans.

He was also human and “got into his bad ways with bad people,” Mulero said. He was most recently living at a halfway house.

In the last few years, his family gave him an ultimatum: Either get sober or lose his family.

“He overcame a lot of adversities to get where he was,” Mulero said.

In the last two years, Rivera got clean and spent more time with his mother. He bought her a walker and an electric scooter. They watched comedies together and gossiped about the actors as though they were all friends.

Rivera was married multiple times but had no children. Growing up as an only child, all he ever wanted was to be a father, Mulero said.

“He left this earth still wanting a baby,” his cousin said, her voice breaking. “He deserved to have somebody to love him unconditionally as well, and he never got that. So, I’m glad he’s in a place where he knows that he was loved and he doesn’t have to befall any of those negative things anymore. He’s at peace and he’s with God.”

Campbell, the alleged hijacker, is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 29.