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Their bus was held up by armed men - who weren't afraid to use their weapons. Monica Bodden found out more from the conductor:

Monica Bodden reporting
On Friday night this Shaw bus left Belize City around 8:45 en route to San Ignacio Town - but while making their way past Hattieville, they were held up at gunpoint by two armed robbers. The bus was loaded with passengers; luckily no one was hurt.

Michael Lewis - Bus Conductor
"Friday night we left Belize City at 8:45pm, and upon arriving in Bainsville we had 3 passengers who were coming off the bus and other passengers who were coming on the bus. When the 3 passengers came off the bus, the guy who was about to enter the bus was armed with a gun, he pointed the gun into my face. He had a mask."

"Upon doing that I ran into the isles of the bus and my driver and supervisor followed behind me."

The two robbers entered the bus at mile 18 on the Western Highway, around the Bainsville area just outside of Hattieville. Lewis, who was the conductor, ran down the aisle to the back of the bus- leaving his black purse with money on the bus's dashboard. The gun - which is described as a .38 revolver that one of the robbers used -was also pointed at the driver.

Dean McCoy - Bus Driver
"At that moment while the gun was pointed at the conductor, I was above him, so the gun was directly pointing towards my chest because I pivoted this way to see the passengers that were entering. All I can see is a black .38 revolver pointed directly at us. I saw the bullet through the barrel, and I did not hesitate. I put my bus in neutral, and I tried to push backward. I yelled to the passengers 'gun;' everybody got scared."

"I eventually got back in my driver's seat and saw if I could probably hit them with something. But they fired shots while they ran from the bus stop in Bainsville."

Monica Bodden
"So, as quickly that they came in with this gun - and pointed it and grabbed what they had - to run out the bus."

Dean McCoy - Bus Driver
"Yes ma'am."

Monica Bodden
"So when you guys tried to hit them or tried to catch up with them, that was when they started firing shots?"

Dean McCoy - Bus Driver
"Yes."

Monica Bodden
"About how many shots?"

Dean McCoy - Bus Driver
"Like 2-3 shots."

Inside the bus at the time were about 35 plus passengers - all horrified at what was taking place right in front of their eyes.

Dean McCoy - Bus Driver
"Everybody was terrified. Some of them were screaming, some tried to assist, but nobody could tell. The gun has no owner, the gun has no sense. I was a bit shocked even though I am an ex-police officer myself, and so is my conductor. But with my experience I saw the bullet in the barrel and that's when I decided to move."

And for these bus men, Friday night's incident has created many concerns for their own safety as well as the safety of their passengers - especially when it comes to these night runs.

Dean McCoy - Bus Driver
"I am still not that scared. I am still doing the night run. But I will still do my petition out there to the minister who is in charge of gun license because we bus drivers who are at risk, if we have a good record we can get our firearm because we have a lot of people's lives in our hands."

Thomas Shaw - Owner, Shaw Busline
"This is the second time something like this actually took place. It's really getting scary because you are out there at night, and you don't really know who to pick up. We are trying to provide a service; you are working hard, but at the end of the day, we work and they steal."

Monica Bodden
"Mr. Shaw, you think that the robbers might have had communication with someone who was on the bus to know exactly where to wait for this bus to stop?"

Thomas Shaw - Owner, Shaw Busline
"From the time the bus left Belize I assumed from what I gathered from my conductor that they must have had constant communication to know because Bainsville is not a big village. There are about 3-4 houses on the main, so how would they know that the bus is going to make that exact stop. I think it was a setup, and maybe that people who ride every night monitor the moves, and it just took place. So I assume that the person that was on board must have been giving them information as to what time the bus is going to get there because by the time the bus stopped, as I stated - a guy walked in right from there, but he was a bit hesitant to get in. But when he got in there this guy came with this mask around his face and just stepped in and pointed the .38 at the conductor and the conductor feared for his life. It was the first time on the job. He was on training; he says it was his first experience."

"To avoid the passengers getting hurt he just did what he had to do."

Shaw Bus line told us that they are grateful for the Hattieville Police who responded quickly to the scene. So far, one person has been detained for questioning. The conductor's purse was stolen; it constrained about 4 to 5 hundred dollars in cash.