APD: Suspect in custody after man threatened school bus driver following collision

Police on Wednesday afternoon identified the 38-year-old man who they said threatened a school bus driver earlier in the day and prompted a brief search within a large perimeter in East Anchorage.

David A. Lee fled on foot after his vehicle and a school bus collided Wednesday morning, an Anchorage Police Department spokesman said. Police had described the suspect as armed and dangerous, but he was apprehended at 10 a.m. and arrested.

Lee was jailed on multiple outstanding warrants and was also charged with several crimes from Wednesday's incident, including assault, eluding police and false information, police said.

Dispatchers received a 911 call about the collision at 36th Avenue and Upland Drive just before 9 a.m., APD spokesman MJ Thim said.

Lee had fled on foot by the time officers arrived, Thim said. The bus driver said Lee threatened his life.

Lee was apprehended in the area where the collision occurred, according to APD spokeswoman Renee Oistad.

Officers had asked residents to stay inside and drivers to avoid an area bordered by Patterson Street, Northern Lights Boulevard, Muldoon Road and 36th Avenue.

Three schools within the perimeter went into "stay put" mode: Scenic Park Elementary, Susitna Elementary and STrEaM Academy charter middle school, according to the Anchorage School District. That means the outside doors were locked but school continued as usual inside.

None of the children on the bus were hurt. Another bus came to take them to Baxter Elementary after their parents were notified, a district spokeswoman said.

A warrant was issued for Lee's arrest for an Anchorage incident March 7 that led to multiple charges, including domestic violence-related second-degree felony assault, with serious injury, according to online Alaska court records.

Another warrant was issued in June when Lee was charged with fourth-degree assault, a misdemeanor, and other offenses, the records show.

Reporter Alex DeMarban contributed to this story.