A bus operator in London has lost his job after pursuing a thief and knocking him out, as determined by a tribunal.

Mark Hehir, who claimed during the hearing that the community viewed him as a “hero,” was at the wheel of a Metroline bus on route 206, which connects Wembley and Maida Vale in northwest London, when a man snatched a necklace from a passenger.

Hehir pursued the thief and successfully retrieved the stolen necklace, but the man returned to the bus to confront him, initiating the physical altercation by throwing “the first punch.” The tribunal heard that Hehir defended himself and held the man down for nearly “half an hour.”

Metroline, during the tribunal, stated that the individual had come back to the bus to apologize, asserting that Hehir had applied “an excessive use of force.”

Both men were taken into custody; however, Hehir was released shortly after and informed that he would not face any further legal repercussions.

The day following the event on June 25, 2024, Hehir was suspended and instructed to attend an investigation.

At a subsequent disciplinary meeting, Hehir was informed that the accusations included “bringing disrepute to the company by physically assaulting a passenger” and “failing to ensure the safety of himself and his passengers by leaving the bus unattended with the engine running while chasing an assailant.”

Hehir explained at the hearing that he had instinctively chased after the man and noted that he had left the bus doors open and the handbrake engaged.

Evidence was presented at the hearing from a detective stating that “the claimant had used force that was both proportionate and necessary under the circumstances to defend himself and the female passenger.”

Operations manager Alina Gioroc, who oversaw the disciplinary proceedings, testified that she believed “the man returned to the bus with a clear intention to apologize and shake hands with the female passenger.”

Gioroc added, “When the man approached to shake hands with the claimant, the claimant pushed him away instead of stepping back himself, and the man had not displayed aggression prior to this point.”

She determined that holding the man for nearly half an hour constituted “an excessive use of force and disproportionate,” according to the tribunal.

Gioroc concluded that all allegations were substantiated and recommended Hehir’s dismissal without notice for gross misconduct.

A tribunal in Watford upheld his termination, stating that “the genuine belief of the disciplinary and appeal managers that the claimant committed gross misconduct was based on reasonable grounds and fell within the range of acceptable responses for an employer in this situation.”