Man with a knife hijacks school bus carrying 11 children

Man with a knife hijacks school bus carrying 11 children then drives it through red lights and stop signs during 10-mile pursuit by ten cop cars

• Nicholas John Miller, 22, hijacked the bus after a woman in Jacksonville, Arkansas, refused to give up her car
• He was pursued for 10 miles by police and only stopped after seeing that they had put spikes across the road
• He has a history of drug abuse and was sentenced in September to 24 months of probation
• He told cops that he stole the vehicle because he thought people were after him

Published: 01:25 GMT, 18 October 2013 | Updated: 08:31 GMT, 18 October 2013

A school bus carrying 11 elementary students and a driver was hijacked at knife-point in Arkansas on Thursday morning and involved in a 10-mile chase before the kidnapper finally surrendered.

The man has been identified as Nicholas John Miller, he is a 22-year-old man from Jacksonville who has had a history of drug abuse and run-ins with local police.

The incident began with Miller allegedly demanded a car from a woman in Jacksonville.

When she refused to give up her vehicle, Miller boarded the bus which had stopped nearby and took over driving it.

Police were informed about the incident by the woman who had refused to give her car and they eventually found the bus and pursued it north to Cabot.

Cell phone footage of the chase, recorded by 17-year-old onlooker Kelsey Eggers, shows the bus moving along a two-lane road pursued by 10 police cars with flashing lights.

Jacksonville police spokeswoman April Kiser said Miller pulled over only after seeing police spike strips on the road. The chase lasted approximately 20 minutes.

‘We were able to get the bus stopped. The suspect was taken into custody, and nobody was injured,’ Jacksonville Police Capt. Kenny Boyd told CNN.

According to an arrest report, Miller told authorities that people were after him and that he needed to take the bus to save his life.

He said he had no plans to hurt any of the children – who attend Pinewood Elementary School in Jacksonville - or the driver.

Miller has been charged with a felony count of vehicle piracy, 12 felony counts of kidnapping, and two felony counts of aggravated assault.

The incident is not his first brush with the law this year and just earlier this month he was charged with Terroristic Threatening following a domestic dispute.

According to a police report, nine days ago a woman told police Miller was high on methamphetamine and that he had assaulted and threatened to kill her if she took his son away.

In May, according to a police report, Miller was arrested on suspicion of breaking and entering a vehicle, and stealing a shotgun and money. He was sentenced in September to 24 months of probation.

In September, Miller was pulled over for having tags displayed incorrectly on the license plate of the car he was driving.

After discovering Miller had a warrant out for his arrest, the officer requested a K-9 Unit to conduct a sweep of the vehicle, which subsequently turned up a syringe with residue on it in the center console, according to the report. Miller was arrested on the warrant and for possession of drug paraphernalia.