On Sunday, police in the South Bay arrested a Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority worker who they think killed another VTA worker on Friday night in a South San José bus yard parking lot.
The Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement that “evidence suggests Bui is solely responsible for the victim’s death.” Duc Minh Bui, 33, of San José was arrested just after noon on Sunday near his home.
Bui was charged with first-degree murder and taken to the Santa Clara County Main Jail.
Sixteen VTA workers were shot and killed at a downtown San José rail yard a little less than three and a half years ago. The killer then killed himself.
Police from VTA said the guy who was killed was bus driver Regulus Teotico, who had been with the company for 10 years.
“We have been lucky to have him on our staff for 10 years.” At a news conference on Monday afternoon, VTA General Manager Carolyn Gonot said, “He was a kind, hardworking driver who was well known among his coworkers.”
She also said that Teotico was known by the nickname Regis. “Regis was the father of two teenage kids, and everyone at VTA is very sorry for his family and friends’ loss.”
Even though the investigation is still going on, police said on Monday that the killing seemed to have been caused by a gambling debt.
At the news conference, Capt. Sugey Jaimez of the sheriff’s office said, “Both the victim and the suspect worked for the VTA as bus drivers and were assigned to the Chaboya yard.”
“It was known that they did the same things when they were not working for the VTA,” Jaimez said. “Even though the investigation is still going on, we think the reason was money owed between the two from betting, which had nothing to do with their jobs.”
At approximately 9:40 p.m. on Friday, someone called 911 to say that someone had been shot at the VTA Chaboya bus yard parking lot. The transit service said the victim was a VTA worker but would not say who they were.
County of Santa Clara The shooting that killed the man was called a “senseless crime” by Bob Jonsen.
Jonsen said, “Even though it was a single, targeted event, we all know how deeply it affected us all.” “During this hard time, our thoughts are with the victim’s family and the VTA community.”
Officials would not say more about what might have happened before the killing because the investigation is still going on.
At this time, Jaimez said that the police are not looking into any other people as possible candidates. Officials said that there would be more police at VTA yards and facilities for the near future.
Monday, San José Mayor Matt Mahan praised the sheriff’s office, the police, and the fire departments for how quickly they responded to the killing and how hard they worked to catch Bui.
He said, “I am thankful for Sheriff Johnson and his whole team. I know they have not slept much in the last 72 hours.” “I believe that level of working together and following through is what you expect and deserve from your government.”
Gonot said that as soon as the agency heard about the shooting, it “made grief counselors available to employees and gave them access to other resources.”
She went on to say, “VTA leaders and unions quickly joined our workers on the scene to offer physical and emotional support.” “These efforts will go on for as long as they are needed.”
Cindy Chavez, the supervisor of Santa Clara County, talked about the mass shooting at the VTA rail yard in May 2021. She also said that Friday night’s shooting could be hard for some VTA workers and others.
Chavez said, “We were still rebuilding after the terrible event three years ago, so for many people this is a repeat of one of the worst things that has ever happened to them.” The mental health programs are there because of this.
This is why it is so important for us to really hold on to each other.
Leave a Reply