NINE years ago, a woman was pushed in front of a bus by a thug jogger in a now-infamous case that left cops and the nation asking: “Who IS the Putney Pusher?”
Despite countless appeals for information and , the chilling crime remains unsolved.
The victim narrowly avoided death when hero bus driver Olivier Salbris managed to swerve at the last second Credit: PA:Press Association
The manhunt was launched in 2017 after harrowing CCTV footage showed a barge his victim in 2017.
The 33-year-old woman narrowly avoided death when, fortunately, hero bus driver Olivier Salbris managed to swerve within seconds of hitting her.
The quick-thinking maneuver meant the driver managed to bring the number 430 bus to a stop just inches from her head as she lay on the ground.
In the wake of the incident detectives interviewed 50 men and arrested three suspects, including an American investment banker.
The moment the jogger approached his victim Credit: Met Police
Cops spent almost ten years hunting the mysterious jogger Credit: Reuters
Oliver Salbris’ quick actions stopped the woman from being crushed under the bus Credit: ITV
Eric Bellquist was reportedly forced into hiding after he was accused of the horrific crime
But no suspect was charged in the case, which went on to become one of Britain’s most famous unsolved after the investigation was closed in 2018.
In the immediate aftermath of the chilling crime a millionaire banker who was arrested over the incident was reportedly forced to hire bodyguards after receiving online death threats.
American Eric Bellquist was after police released shocking footage of the .
The 41-year-old went into hiding and was under the protection of ex-SAS veterans despite proving that he was in America at the time of the incident on May 5.
Cops eventually confirmed Bellquist had been eliminated from their enquiries after discovering he was 5,000 miles away on holiday in California when the Putney Pusher struck.
The Metropolitan Police are understood to have failed to check whether the banker was in the country before he was arrested.
Police said officers had “reasonable grounds” to arrest Bellquist, from Chelsea, West London, in connection with the offence.
But Bellquist’s friends insisted the force should apologise with people desperate to bring the Pusher to justice directing their anger at Bellquist.
As the search for the mysterious jogger wore on, the world’s top fugitive hunter warned that the “Putney Pusher” posed a credible danger to the public and said he had to be caught before he struck again.
, a crack ex-detective, who founded secret undercover unit SO10, warned that the Pusher may commit further offences.
Peter Bleksley previously warned that the assailant poses a considerable danger to the public Credit: Channel 4
The case would have been de-prioritised, Peter said Credit: Channel 4
He previously told The Sun: “This person needs finding as much today as they did back then, there’s something clearly not right here.
“Sometimes with , some of them will kill, then not re-offend for many years.
“It might be on the tube, it might be fatal.”
A theory banded around by armchair detectives claimed that the Pusher could be a .
But Peter rubbished the conspiracy, adding: “If you’re dangerous enough to do something like that, it’s even more important he’s caught if it was somebody that works within a government agency.
“Imagine what other crimes they could get up to.”
launched their investigation immediately after the horrific incident and over the course of a year identified 50 “persons of interest”.
All of them were researched, reviewed and eventually eliminated from suspicion and all reasonable lines of enquiry were closed.
With no suspect identified and having exhausted every avenue, The Met brought their investigation to an end.
As the mystery continued and with police no closer to catching the Pusher Professor Craig Jackson, from Birmingham University, offered his opinion on who the mystery man could be.
Speaking to Good Morning Britain at the time, he said: “What we’re clearly looking at here is an individual who believes he is more important and more valuable than somebody else.
“He plays a game of chicken with this individual and he’s clearly thinking why should he move, it’s his pavement.
“He clearly veers to his right towards this lady and I think he has picked this individual possibly in a moment of madness – what we sometimes call low-impulse-control behaviour – but he’s clearly taking this lady on because he believes he’s in the right, and that’s quite worrying.”
No new clues in the case were reported since cops gave up the hunt in 2018.
The mystery commanded such attention that, in 2024, a play depicting the horror incident was made.
Officers were hopeful that the actor’s rendition of the harrowing scenes could encourage someone to come forward.
Bus driver Oliver Salbris appeared on Good Morning Britain to discuss the horrific incident Credit: ITV
Eric Bellquist Putney was cleared of suspicion when it emerged he had been in America at the time of the horror Credit: Wright, Benjamin
Once Upon a Bridge was performed just two miles from the bone-chilling scene.
Artistic director at the OSO, Lydia Sax, told the Guardian : “I often wonder why that one individual act mattered so much to so many.
“The severity of the attack was part of it, I think. And the fact it was never solved.”
The play featured the point of view from the runner, his victim and bus driver Olivier.
Written by Sonya Kelly, the script explored different theories and possible motives.
Unfortunately, the dramatic telling of the incident did not prompt any fresh witnesses to come forward.
Ex-cop Peter Bleksley, who starred in , says the case was not as simple as finding one witness.
The ex-Scotland Yard officer said police would have gone door to door and set parameters for how far and wide they would cast their net.
But in a , coupled with the fact the victim did not die, the case would have been de-prioritised.
The ex-cop explained: “If somebody had died, we would have had anniversary appeals from the police.
“A homicide investigation team would have been dedicated to that case and the harsh reality is it would’ve been far more likely to have been solved.
“It will a senior will call it a day.”
Peter – who has over 30 years experience as a detective – admitted anything could have happened to the grey-shirted shover.
He concluded: “If that behaviour is never, ever repeated, then that is of course a better scenario than re-offending.
“That person may have taken themselves off to hospital and got treatment after they have done this, they might have realised what a danger they are to others.
“They could be in prison for other offences which others don’t know about. They could be dead.”
But today, after fresh information came to light, the force revealed it had arrested a man in connection with the 2017 incident.
The suspect is understood to have connections to several of Europe’s royal families, including the House of Windsor.
A director at a private bank, the man served with the British in several conflicts, the Daily Mail reports.
Since leaving the armed forces he reportedly moved into a career in the city, advising high-net-worth clients and organisations.
He remains in police custody after being arrested today on suspicion of attempted grievous bodily harm.
A spokesman said: “On Monday, 15 June, a 44-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of attempted grievous bodily harm. He was taken to custody, where he remains.
“The arrest relates to an incident on 5 May 2017, where a woman was pushed into the path of a bus on Putney Bridge in Putney. Inquiries continue.”
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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