UNSUNG HEROES
CHESTER CABBIE HELPED SNARE POST OFFICE ROBBERS
A taxi driver who helped police catch a knife-wielding post office robber and his accomplice has been commended for his actions.
Stuart Convery, 59, from Chester, followed the two men in his cab after they had stolen cash from Christleton Post Office and alerted police to their where- abouts.
Mr Convery, along with nearby resident Alan Smith who assist- ed officers with descriptions, were awarded £300 for helping to put the duo behind bars.
At Chester Crown Court last month, Mark Bruce, 23, was jailed for two years and 19- year-old Charlie Clark
Stuart Convery
was sentenced to three and a half years in a Young Offenders Institution. Both men pleaded guilty to car- rying out the robbery on March 23 last year. Bruce, who entered the village post office with his face masked and armed with a carv- ing knife, threatened the female worker behind the counter and stole £95 before fleeing the scene with
Clark, who had been waiting outside. Mr Convery, who was a member of the Terri- torial Army for more than 20 years, told the Chester Chronicle: “I always say ‘for evil to succeed all it takes is for good men to do nothing’.
“The £300 came as a bit of a shock, I could- n’t believe it. The judge said without my evidence this would never have come to court.”
DC Rhys Nevett said: “The sentences reflect the serious nature of what they did. The two men kept these offend- ers in view until officers arrived. We would like to thank them for their public- spirited action.”
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FALMOUTH CABBIES RESCUE MINIBUS SERVICE
Taxi firms have been praised for their offers of support after van- dalism put the minibus at FalCare’s Mencap House in Falmouth out of action.
Day centre manager Gareth Davies is delighted with the reaction from firms and others who had offered help.
The centre’s bus was taken off the road a month ago after van- dals threw a concrete post at it, causing damage to the body- work and breaking a window.
It is used for picking up and collecting clients with learning disabilities as well as taking them out on trips.
The first day all trips
had to be cancelled; after that staff were left juggling their rotas to try and organise tak- ing clients in their own vehicles.
But offers from taxi firms were quickly forthcoming. “The response has been really good and given me confidence back in the public,” said Mr Davies. Falmouth Minibus Services was chosen to help the centre and did so for several days.
Steve Brewer, from the company, told the West Briton Series: “I think it’s disgraceful that the vandalism happened and I was happy to help out Fal- Care. They do a great job.”
Mr Davies said he was also pleased to received an anony- mous donation of £40 ‘towards taxi fares’. “People have stopped me in the street and said we could use their cars if we want to, but they didn’t have wheelchair access. The response has been really good.” Mr Davies also praised all the businesses which helped raise funds for the new sen- sory room at the centre.
Many donated items to raffle which helped raise £750.
The next fundraising event is likely to be a summer ball in aid of equipping a games room and towards more trips out.
HERO DUBLIN CABBIE HELPED TO SAVE TOT’S LIFE
Taxi driver Karl O’Neill’s quick actions helped save a little girl’s life. Poppy Bella Tate, 1, suffered a febrile con- vulsion and turned lifeless in her mother’s arms. Her parents, Lorna and Frankie, feared the worst when Poppy’s lips turned blue and she fell limp. But quick-thinking Karl, who happened to be passing at the time, rushed them to the Rotunda Hospital and helped save the tod- dler’s life.
“I saw the commotion. There was a group of people all standing around. I thought someone had been knocked down. I could see a girl holding the baby and she was screaming ‘somebody help me, somebody help me’,” Karl told the Dublin Evening Herald. He pulled his cab over and called to the panic-stricken parents
Quick thinking taxi driver Karl O’Neill to get in.
While he stayed calm as he took them to the emergency depart- ment, he realised afterwards the seri- ousness of what had happened.
“The baby was blue and the parents were saying ‘what’ll we do?’ I said ‘blow into the baby’s mouth’. I think the mother-in-law blew into the baby’s mouth and she then started coughing and that was a good thing.
“When they got out of the car, then I was
shaking. I didn’t realise at the time how serious it was.” Father-of-one Karl, 36, from north Dublin, said he went through a short cut instead of the long way around, sav- ing vital time. Frankie and Lorna have now been able to thank Karl in person for his actions.
Doctors in the Rotun- da Hospital treated Poppy and she was transferred to Temple Street Hospital and put on medication for a respiratory infection.
PHTM MARCH 2011
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