Men sent to jail for assaulting TTC operators

On June 8, a man was acting in a disorderly manner on the 102 Markham bus. The operator asked the man to settle down.  He refused, and the operator then asked the man to leave the bus.

The suspect then struck the operator four times with an umbrella, resulting in minor injuries.  The suspect was arrested a short time later by Toronto Police.

On June 13, Varatharajan Ponnampalam, 46, pleaded guilty to a charge of assault, and was sentenced to 120 days in jail and one year probation. As part of the probation order, Ponnampalam is to not ride the operator’s bus and not be on TTC vehicles or property with alcohol in his system.

On April 18, a TTC operator was assaulted on the 123 Shorncliffe bus. The suspect grabbed the operator by the arm as the bus was in motion and demanded to be driven to a nearby liquor store. On June 10, Anthony Savo-Sadaro, 43, pleaded guilty to a charge of assault and was sentenced to 25 days in jail and two years probation.

On average, one TTC employee is assaulted every day, ranging from punching, slapping and spitting, to threats of physical harm or death. The TTC’s Court Advocates work with Crown Attorneys to secure the stiffest penalties possible for those convicted of assaulting TTC employees, and continue to seek limits on the use of public transit in Toronto for those convicted of these crimes.