PINELLAS PARK — A 28-year-old man was arrested Sunday following an altercation aboard a PSTA bus during which a firearm was displayed and discharged, according to the Pinellas Park Police Department.
The incident occurred at approximately 11:45 a.m. on August 2, 2026, near U.S. Highway 19 and 49th Street North.
Police initially responded to reports that a person had been shot aboard the bus. Investigators later determined that no one was struck by the gunfire.
According to police, 28-year-old Victor Lambert and 41-year-old Earltwan Grainger, both of Pinellas County, had been involved in an ongoing verbal dispute.
Investigators said Lambert boarded the PSTA bus, where the verbal altercation continued. The confrontation escalated when Lambert allegedly brandished a firearm.
Grainger then became involved in a physical struggle with Lambert over the firearm, during which the weapon discharged inside the bus. The round did not strike anyone.
The physical altercation continued until Lambert exited the bus after it stopped along the shoulder of U.S. Highway 19 North. Police said Lambert threatened Grainger with the firearm multiple times before fleeing on foot.
Officers with the Pinellas Park Police Department, assisted by the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, located Lambert after he fled into the bathroom at Mayors Park at Freedom Lake. He was taken into custody without further incident.
Grainger suffered minor injuries during the physical altercation and was transported to a local hospital for treatment. Police confirmed that his injuries were not caused by gunfire.
After Grainger was released from the hospital, he was arrested on an unrelated outstanding warrant.
Lambert was transported to the Pinellas County Jail and charged with aggravated assault and improper exhibition of a firearm.
Police said the incident was isolated and stemmed from an ongoing dispute between Lambert and Grainger, with no indication that it was a random act of violence.