After failing to obey the bus' flashing amber lights and stop, the driver went on to hit a mailbox and kept going, the patrol said.

The State Patrol said it has nailed down the identity of a pickup truck driver who zoomed onto the shoulder and passed a school bus that was stopped on an Iron Range highway while dropping off students, officials said.

The dangerous maneuver occurred about 3:45 p.m. on Dec. 20 about 4 miles north of Virginia along southbound Hwy. 169 near Polar Drive, the State Patrol said.

After failing to obey the bus' flashing amber lights and stop to allow children to step off, the driver went on to hit a mailbox and kept going, the patrol said. No children were hurt.

The patrol said three days later that it had identified the driver as a 60-year-old man from Tower, Minn. The Star Tribune generally does not identify suspects before they are charged.

No charges have been announced in connection with the incident. Patrol Lt. Mike Lee said the investigation is continuing.

The driver passed to the right, video from the bus' camera showed. Such an act is a gross misdemeanor crime in Minnesota.

Court records in Minnesota show that the man' driving history includes three convictions for drunken driving and three more for driving after his license was either canceled or revoked.