:strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/d1vhqlrjc8h82r.cloudfront.net/03-23-2021/t_aa3beab2c07e45c4923058e178f3f4bc_name_image.jpg "Man arrested in fatal shooting on Broward bus has previous conviction for murder")
WEST PARK, Florida – A Fort Lauderdale man accused of shooting a Broward County Transit bus passenger and killing him after an argument is now behind bars.
Mario Alphonso Williams, 51, faces a premeditated murder charge in the shooting death on Sunday of Joseph Jackson, 42, Broward’s Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday. Records show that Williams had a previous conviction for murder.
Investigators say there was a “brief verbal strife” on the bus on Sunday afternoon and that Williams showed Jackson that he had a gun and threatened to kill him.
The deputies say that when the bus stopped and Jackson went to the exit, Williams opened fire, shooting Jackson several times in the back.
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Williams then got off the bus and fired additional shots at Jackson before fleeing the scene, investigators said.
A witness allegedly saw this happen and followed the sniper off the bus, watching him throw away the evidence, including a firearm and a bible. Mario Williams’ name was written on one of the pages of the Bible, officials say, helping to lead to prison.
A call to 911 arrived just before 2 pm Sunday, near the intersection of Southwest 35th Street and South State Road 7 in West Park.
When the police arrived, they found Jackson, from Miami Gardens, on the sidewalk with several gunshot wounds. He was rushed to the Regional Memorial Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Family members say that Jackson was bipolar and schizophrenic, and that he talked to himself often. They are wondering if this triggered the altercation on the bus and wondering why it had to lead to violence.
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“You could have stopped,” said Jackson’s great-aunt, Rosa Taylor. “You could have said, ‘He’s leaving, it’s not worth it, he’s not a threat to me.’ What he said, you could just let it go through your head. “
The authorities are still trying to figure out how things have escalated so quickly.
After his arrest, Williams faced a judge on Tuesday and is being held without bail at Broward Main Prison.
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