LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The suspect accused of stabbing a man to death on a Regional Transportation Commission bus pleaded "not guilty" to murder charges on Thursday.
After the initial arraignment was continued, Aaron Cole appeared in Regional Justice Court in Las Vegas to enter a "not guilty" plea.
59-year-old Aaron Cole was indicted by a grand jury in the fatal stabbing of 30-year-old Dominique Lucas in February.
The attack was caught on surveillance footage, which was presented in front of the grand jury and showed Cole stabbing Lucas over 30 times in the front of the bus. In the audio, Lucas can be heard pleading to be let off the bus and calling for his mother.
Cole's defense attorney, Thomas Ericsson, told a judge on Thursday that he is currently in a four-week federal trial and has not been able to speak with the defendant regarding his right to a speedy trial. Ericsson requested to reserve that portion of the arraignment after he has a chance to communicate with Cole.
Cole is due back in court for another status check on April 18, 2023.
RTC of Southern Nevada released the following statement, addressing concerns about the safety of passengers.
"At the RTC, our passengers’ and drivers’ safety is our utmost priority. We engage in several measures to ensure the safety of our passengers and drivers, including deploying security officers who patrol our transit system at any given time, providing real-time access to our surveillance system for law enforcement agencies, and adding Transit Watch on our rideRTC app for passengers to report suspicious activity," the statement read. "In addition to being one of the first agencies to install driver safety enclosures, we continue to invest in safety, including $10 million to upgrade our security equipment and $13 million annually for contracted security services."
