HART bus stabbing suspect refuses to go to court; victim, witness testify

TAMPA, Fla. - HART bus driver Schnaider Prophete says he was trying to deal with a malfunctioning coin machine on his bus when he was confronted by an irate passenger named James Ambrose.

Next thing he knew, he was fighting for his life.

"He lured toward me to get into my upper body. That’s when I tried to stop it with my legs," explained Prophete during a bond hearing for Ambrose.

Prophete re-lived being attacked by a passenger Nov. 19, 2019. He says Ambrose challenged him to fight and then pulled out a bottle of pepper spray.

 "First I felt burning, it hurt," said Prophete.

Seconds later, Prophete says Ambrose brandished a box cutter and aimed right at him.

"when he stabbed me, he applied pressure hoping that he works to tear within my chest," recounted Prophete. 

Passenger John Phelps jumped out of his seat and headed toward the front of the bus.

"He started slicing him like a Christmas ham. Once he was on the floor, he just started slicing Mr. Prophete," explained Phelps. 

Phelps put himself between Ambrose and Prophete. Other witnesses on the bus saw the commotion and were able to identify Ambrose as the attacker 

Hillsborough County Judge Jack Espinosa watched a portion of the HART surveillance video that showed the attack. 

Ambrose’s lawyer never called any witnesses during the bond hearing, but argued his client was not a danger to the community. Judge Espinosa disagreed.

"No conditions of release is sufficient to protect the community from risk of physical harm to persons," said Espinosa.

Ambrose will remain in jail until his trial. Prophete had to undergo two hours of emergency surgery after the attack.