Arizona Man Arrested After Being Caught on Video Dumping Woman Out of Her Wheelchair

An Arizona man who was caught on video dumping a woman out of her wheelchair and then stealing the wheelchair has been arrested, police said.

According to a Facebook post from the City of Phoenix Police Department, Austin Shurbutt was arrested on Saturday after the video went viral on social media. Upon seeing the video, “thousands” of people shared a photo of Shurbutt’s face in an effort to help police locate him.

Police said Shurbutt, 26, has two outstanding warrants and is now facing five new charges, including robbery, kidnapping and assault.

In video footage of the crime, which was shared by police, Shurbutt can be seen wearing a red hoodie and sitting across from the woman on a light-rail train. He then gets up out of his seat and attempts to force the woman out of her wheelchair, eventually dumping her out onto the floor of the train and taking the wheelchair off the train as it pulls into the station.

A group of bystanders who were also on the train rushed out to follow Shurbutt, and the video shows them successfully retrieving the wheelchair as Shurbutt flees the scene.

“Difficult video to watch as criminal tries to steal a wheelchair right out from under a woman, but hero passengers on the light rail came to her rescue,” police said of the Nov. 29 crime.

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According to CNN, Shurbutt is scheduled to be arraigned on Dec. 16. The outlet reports that he is being represented by the Maricopa County Public Defender’s Office, but has not yet been assigned an attorney.

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