Crime & Safety
Support Pouring in for Maybeck High Student Burned on AC Transit Bus
Many members of the public have rallied to offer support for an 18-year-old student at Maybeck High School in Berkeley, who suffered severe burns Monday when he was sleeping on an AC Transit bus and was set on fire by another passenger.
By Laura Dixon, Bay City News Service
Community members are rallying around an 18-year-old high school senior who was badly burned when someone lit his clothes on fire as he slept in the back of an AC Transit bus in Oakland on Monday evening.
The victim is Luke "Sasha" Fleischman, 18, who attends Berkeley's Maybeck High School, a small college prep school with about 100 students, according to school Director Trevor Cralle.
The teen suffered severe second- and third-degree burns in the fire and will need several surgeries, according to a fundraising web page that was set up to help cover the cost of Fleischman's medical care.
More than 375 supporters had donated $20,229 as of 2:20 p.m. today, surpassing the fundraising goal of $20,000.
Hundreds of donors, including individuals and organizations, left online messages of support and wishes for a speedy recovery for Fleischman.
Some said they were strangers but had heard what happened and wanted to help out.
"I hope it helps to find out you have friends you did not even know existed," one donor wrote.
Police say a 16-year-old boy lit Fleischman on fire as he slept toward the rear of a bus traveling near MacArthur Boulevard and Ardley Avenue, near Interstate Highway 580, around 5:20 p.m. Monday.
Passengers saw the fire and alerted the driver, who stopped the bus to call for help as the suspect fled, according to police.
Fleischman was taken to the burn center at St. Francis Memorial Hospital in San Francisco where he was listed in stable condition today, according to police.
Investigators were able to locate the suspect with the help of Oakland Unified School District police, and arrested him on suspicion of intentionally setting the victim on fire.
His name has not been released because he is a juvenile.
Police today declined to comment on the motive behind the brutal attack.
Copyright © 2013 by Bay City News, Inc. – Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
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