24 PRIVATE HIRE AND TAXI MONTHLY
MARCH 2009 TERROR TIMES
CHESTERFIELD WOMAN’S THREATS TO KILL OPERATOR
A woman threatened to kill a taxi operator after being told she would have to wait for a cab, a court heard. Kelly Gorman became angry during a tele- phone conversation with Katie Bunting, of A2B Cars, after she was told they were very busy and she would have to wait for a car. Chesterfield magistrates heard that Miss Bunting said Gorman could can- cel the booking and she
replied: “Stop being a bitch and get me a taxi now. I’m going to come down there and knock your head off.”
Miss Bunting then can- celled the booking and Gorman threatened: “Do you realise I’m going to kill you?” Becky Mahon, prosecut- ing, said furious Gorman turned up ten minutes later with her eyes look- ing like they were bulging out of her head. “Miss Bunting was petri-
fied,” she said. “There was just a perspex screen separating them. Gorman received a three-month jail term, suspended for a year, and must pay £350 compensation to Miss Bunting and £60 to A2B Cars, with £60 costs. She was also handed a one-year probation supervision order and a curfew order requiring her to stay indoors from 7pm to 7am for the next three months.
SPALDING TAXI DRIVER ATTACKED BY FARE DODGER
A man who attacked a taxi driver after refusing to pay his fare has been warned he could be jailed. Taxi driver Mohammed Choudry had to have a tooth removed after being punched in the mouth by Leroy Brittain on November 9.
Mr Choudry had driven Brittain and his brother Dylan to their home- after picking them up from a pub in Spalding. Upon arriving the pair walked away from the taxi without paying the £21.60 fare and went inside their home. Mr Choudry tapped on
the window to ask for the money, but was then attacked by Leroy Brittain, who punched him in the mouth before landing “seven or eight” blows on the back of his head. The force of the first punch was such that it forced one of Mr Choudry’s teeth into its socket and it required dental treatment to remove it.
Leroy Brittain (26), who has a history of assault, pleaded guilty to caus- ing actual bodily harm and theft and Dylan Brittain (21) admitted theft when they
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appeared at Spalding Magistrates’ Court. Judith Armstrong, defending the pair, said that Leroy Brittain accepted responsibility for the attack but did not accept he punched Mr Choudry to the back of the head as often as was stated.
According to the Lincoln Free Press, Magistrates said Leroy Brittain may go to jail.
Dylan Brittain was fined £100 and ordered to pay £10.80 compen- sation for the taxi fare. He was also ordered to pay £60 costs and a £15 victim surcharge.
SOLIHULL CABBIES IN STATE OF FEAR OVER VIOLENCE
Taxi drivers in Solihull are running scared after a stark increase in the number of attacks across the region. Police are investigating incidents that have seen drivers assaulted or threatened with vio- lence.
On each occasion the robbers have demand- ed cash before fleeing from their victims with the evening’s takings. Mr Tariq Ali who works
for local firm, Hackney Carriage, said that night shifts are becoming unbearable with the number of attacks on the rise.
Local police have urged private hire and taxi drivers to put their safety first after notic- ing the increase in attacks.
Officers have told drivers and their con- trol rooms to step up security. Det Con Matt Dyer told the Solihull
News: “We are look- ing into this slight increase but in the meantime we need drivers themselves to be extra vigilant. There does not appear to be any sin- gle area affected.” DC Dyer also said that operators should ask for more personal details when booking, and drivers should make arrangements to deposit their takings throughout the night.
HALIFAX CABBIES TELL OF FEAR OF ATTACK FROM YOBS
Cabbies facing a daily battle against stone- throwing yobs say it has to stop before someone is killed. More than 30 private hire and hackney car- riage taxis have been pelted with bricks and rocks, many aimed at the windscreens, in Boothtown, Halifax, and roads nearby, said Calderdale Private Hire Association.
Despite the damage stretching to thousands of pounds, drivers fear the human cost could be a much higher price to pay.
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A taxi driver has spo- ken about the terrifying moment he was con- fronted with a man wielding a gun at pedestrians near his car in the middle of a busy city centre street. Steve Bartram, 37, was parked in St Peter’s Street opposite City Hall when he spotted the man, who was holding a gun, which later turned out to be a replica. He told the Norwich Evening News: “He was pointing the gun at everyone. He was run- ning around like a mad man. I’ve seen some things in Norwich having been a taxi driver here for 13 years, but never that.” He said: “The gunman started pointing the gun at this man near my taxi. The man looked scared and obviously didn’t know what was
going to happen; he thought he was going to shoot him. “Then he suddenly turned on these women, pointing the gun at them. I didn’t know it was a replica so I was thinking it was a real gun at this point.” Mr Bartram made a call to the police, and as he was doing so, he saw the man flee.
He said: “The next thing I saw was the police fol- low where the man had just been, and there was a police helicopter over- head as well. Then a few minutes later a police car came past my cab and the man who had been holding the gun was in the back.” A spokeswoman for Nor- folk police confirmed that officers arrested the offender and recovered a replica handgun.
owner of A1 Bashy’s, based at Bull Green, Halifax, told the Halifax Evening Courier that eight of his drivers had recently been bom- barded with missiles, which have smashed windows and left large dents in cars. Mr Youssaf said: “I have been based in Calderdale for 13 years and I have never known it this bad. Each driver is thinking, ‘Is it going to be me next’ and if nothing changes some- body could be killed. “Two weeks ago four drivers in one night had their windows smashed
by a group of people throwing bricks off Godley Bridge. Mr Youssaf says his taxis are now deliber- ately late for jobs in Boothtown to discour- age residents in the area from using them. The private hire associ- ation says up to 40 cars belonging to Premier Taxis, A1 Ziggy’s Taxis, Crossley’s Taxis, and others have been hit in the attacks.
It has got so bad that some drivers are talk- ing about holding a meeting to discuss boycotting the area altogether.
BRIDLINGTON DRIVER PUTS UP A BRAVE FIGHT
A brave woman taxi driver fought off two attackers who left her with a suspected bro- ken arm after trying to steal her earnings. Jade Fowler, 23, of AJ Cars, was left in shock when two men she picked up from Bridling- ton Spa at around 5am on Sunday 1st February turned violent when she dropped them off in Scarborough.
The men had paid their fare up front but Jade became suspicious when they directed her down several dark backstreets of Scar- borough.
When she stopped the car, the man in the front seat leapt out and opened the driver’s door while the man in the back tried to grab Jade’s neck.
She put up a brave
fight, punching one of them and making his nose bleed, before locking herself in the car and driving off. “It happened so quick- ly,” Jade told the Bridlington Free Press. “Looking back I sup- pose it was silly of me to fight back against two men, I could have come off a lot worse. “But I wasn’t really fighting for the money, it was more for the principle of it. You work hard trying to make a living and then people like that come along and try to take it off you, they shouldn’t be able to get away with it.”
The two men managed to escape with just a small amount of money as the takings spilled onto the pavement and into the car.
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