IN THE
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MET POLICE OFFICER SACKED AFTER MOONLIGHTING AS UBER DRIVER
A Metropolitan Police officer who moonlighted as an Uber driver has been sacked after he applied for a licence with fake documents. PC Muhammed Darr was still on probation as a new officer when he was arrested in November 2019 on suspicion of fraud. Bosses at Scotland Yard had no idea Darr had a second job as a private hire driver, a misconduct panel was told. In the criminal investigation, Darr tried to hide the fact he was a serving officer, calling himself “self-employed” and pretending he knew the police caution from TV. A panel has now found Darr guilty of gross misconduct. The hearing
was told that Darr had worked as an Uber driver since 2018 without declaring it as a “business interest” to the police force. He fell under criminal suspicion after submitting a faked TfL private hire licence and bogus insurance documents to Uber when renewing his licence. In a police interview, Darr claimed he paid £100 for the documents to a man from Gumtree, and insisted he only found out they were fake when Uber raised concerns. Darr was cleared of fraud after a criminal trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court, however, the police misconduct panel decided he knew the documents were bogus. “He is a police officer and common
sense would have told him that any offer from Gumtree would be suspicious”, the panel ruled. The misconduct hearing was told that Darr did not tell his Met bosses that he was under criminal investigation, and failed to state he was a police officer when ques- tioned over the fraud. Darr was found guilty of gross mis- conduct for submitting fraudulent documents to Uber and lying about being a police officer and guilty of misconduct for hiding his second job with Uber from the Met. Darr handed in his resignation on the first day of the misconduct hearing, but he was nonetheless dismissed without notice.
Taxi services from Edinburgh Airport will now be provided by a private hire firm after previous operator City Cabs lost out on the contract. From April 14, Capital Cars will provide both the taxi and private hire operation at the airport after a joint bid by black cab companies was rejected. The move from two operators to one company will see Capital Cars – which currently only provides PHVs – managing the airport service for the next five years. It’s understood they will need to recruit black cab drivers, who are largely self-employed, but the move has sparked fears about a lack of available black cabs for those with disabilities who will
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TAXI SERVICES AT EDINBURGH AIRPORT NOW PROVIDED BY PRIVATE HIRE FIRM CAPITAL CARS struggle to
get accessible
transport from the airport. An Edinburgh airport spokes- person added that they were confident that Capital Cars could deliver on the deal to provide a mix of both black cabs and PHVs and stressed that the tender process had been ‘stringent’. The changes will also see a shift to upgraded technology, including charging points for EVs, a queue monitoring system, and new ANPR cameras. The spokesperson said: “The tender process has worked to identify how we can ensure a consistent and reliable supply of taxis and PHVs for passengers who need that option. The new measures we will introduce will
provide passengers with up to date data on taxi and private hire times, as well as encourage that move to EVs thanks to
new charging
points.” A spokesperson for Capital Cars said: “We understand there is some trepidation around this contract, as it’s the first time Edinburgh Airport has had only one operator delivering both black cabs and PHVs. But we already have
some hackney cabs
registered to work with us and we are looking to recruit more in the coming weeks. “Comments about a lack of black cabs are just scaremongering. We are confident we can deliver the mix of both vehicles and meet customers’ needs.”
APRIL 2023 PHTM
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