...TIMES STOCKPORT CABBIE ROBBED
A taxi boss has hit out at the ‘scumbags’ who attacked a cabbie for his evening’s takings and left him needing hospital treatment. The 40-year-old picked up three men and a woman from an address in Bredbury in the early hours of a recent Friday.
Upon arrival at the destination, the driver was punched and held down while cash and his sat nav system were stolen.
Although David Hul- bert, secretary of the Stockport Owner Driv- er Association, has been left angered by the attack, he says such incidents are almost inevitable. He said: “The victim was just a bloke trying to earn a living but these people are scumbags and have no respect for anyone else. “It’s all right saying ‘be on your guard’ but you have a split second to judge someone’s character when they get into your vehicle. I know from personal
experience that you can get that judge- ment very wrong. “Thankfully, these attacks are fairly rare but sadly they are part of the job. It unfortu- nately comes with the territory.”
The driver was taken to hospital to be treat- ed for cuts and bruises.
Detectives have appealed for witness- es to the attack. A check found the group had no connection with the Bredbury address they had given as a pick up point - they had just waited outside it. Detective Inspector Kevin Dolan, from Stockport CID, said: “This was a disgrace- ful attack. If taxi drivers have any reser- vations about their prospective passen- gers, then they do not have to pick them up.” Anyone with informa- tion should contact Stockport CID on 0161 856 9840 or Crimestop- pers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
BURY CABBIE IN KNIFE ATTACK
A taxi driver was taken to hospital after being slashed across the face with a knife. According to the Bury Times, the 36-year-old man was discovered after police following reports a taxi driver was being assaulted.
The man underwent treatment to a deep cut below his eye. Police say a 48-year- old man was arrested on suspicion of rob- bery at the scene. He has been bailed until September 7 pending further inquiries.
BASINGSTOKE DRIVER ROBBED
A 34-year-old taxi driv- er was punched and robbed by a group of men after picking them up from a Bas- ingstoke pub.
The passengers, a group of about eight white men with Irish accents, got into the blue Fiat minibus and asked to be taken to a site in Micheldever. The taxi arrived at its destination and the passengers attacked the driver, punching him repeatedly and stealing his bank card, driving licence and £130 cash.
They then fled the scene and the victim raised the alarm. He
was taken to Bas- ingstoke Hospital where he was treated for bruising to his neck and face.
Detective Constable James Richardson told the Basingstoke Gazette: “It appears as if the cab driver was identified as a vulnera- ble target by the suspects.
“I would appeal to anyone who saw the men get into the cab outside The White Hart pub or anyone who saw any suspi- cious men in Micheldever late on the night of the attack- to contact me on 0845 045 4545.”
A late-night attack left a taxi driver believing he was going to die after a fare throttled him and tried to steal his takings.
LLANDUDNO DRIVER RECALLS LATE-NIGHT ASSAULT got out.
The assault has left the driver - who would only be named as Tony - too traumatised to work at night. The incident took place as the driver attempted to take two men from Llandudno to Llanrwst. The 30-year-old father of four told the Liver- pool Echo: “He grabbed me from behind in a headlock and was strangling me and I started to go dizzy. I honestly thought I was never going to see my chil- dren again.” The self-employed
driver is warning other drivers to be on their guard when they pick up late night fares. “This is the second time in a few months that a Llandudno driv- er has been attacked and I want to warn oth- ers to be very careful who they let into their cabs,” he said.
“They paid me half the fare to Llanrwst and said they’d get the other half when they got there. They chat- ted on the way there and seemed okay, but when I stopped in the square one jumped out and did a runner. “I pressed the lock so the other one couldn’t get out and said I wanted the fare. “The next thing, he
AUGUST 2009 PHTM
grabbed me from behind around my neck and went wild, head- butting me and trying to bite my ear saying he wanted my takings. “I was terrified but I did- n’t want him to take my night’s takings because that’s the money to feed my kids, so I slammed my foot on the accelerator before slamming on the brake hard.
“He let go and jumped out of the car and I phoned the police. At that point his mate came back so I started reversing down the road with them chas- ing me.” Tony says his night- mare only ended when a passing ambulance stopped and the crew
“The lads ran off. One came back and said he was sorry and apolo- gised for his friend but it was a bit late for that,” said the the driver. Tony was left with a bruised neck, a bruised and bloody nose and a black eye after the attack. But he says the psycho- logical damage is worse. “At the moment I don’t want to work at night, but I’ll have to do it eventually because that’s when we make our money.” North Wales Police are appealing for anyone with information about the attack to contact their local police sta- tion.
WORKSOP PELLET ATTACKS
Urgent calls are being made for tighter secu- rity and increased safety for taxi drivers across Bassetlaw after a driver claimed he was shot at with an air rifle.
The driver, who did not want to be named for fear of repercussions, said he was fired at with two pellets while driving through Work- sop during the early hours of a recent Sat- urday night. Simon Ward, chairman of the Bassetlaw Taxi Operators’ Associa- tion (BTOA), said the man escaped unharmed but expressed serious concerns over future attacks on drivers. “Fortunately the pellets did not go through the strengthened glass, but did damage the screen which needed repairing. The driver was very lucky as the first shot hit the wind- screen directly in front of his face,” he told the Worksop Guardian. “The Association is concerned that only a
serious injury or death in the town due to the lack of policing in the town centre at week- ends will see this resolved.” Mr Ward said the driver immediately dialled 999 but the police failed to attend the scene or contact him the following day as promised.
He said: “They have since visited the driver but as expected their attitude was that noth- ing could really be done after this period of time. And this situa- tion is not the first time that the police’s response was slow.” Notts Police con- firmed they had received a call at 1.45am from the driv- er but since he had not seen an offender or a weapon in line with the graded response policy, an assessment was made of the call to determine the type of response required, depending on factors such as available evidence and witnesses.
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