TERROR TIMES
PASSENGERS BEAT AND ROB OXFORD CABBIE BUT DESPITE DASHCAM FOOTAGE NO ARRESTS MADE
An Oxford taxi driver has been beaten and robbed by
three
passengers but despite clear dashcam footage of the attack no arrests have been made. The driver, working for 001 Taxis, pulled his cab over when the pass- engers were unable to pay the fare. The distraught cabbie confirmed £170 was taken in the attack which took place on Harebell Road at around 2.30am on Saturday October 16. Dashcam footage from inside the car shows the driver being continually threatened and repeatedly hit by the attackers. During the incident, one of the attackers said: “Where is your
f*****g money? Give me your
money now or I will kill you.” The taxi driver responds by saying “take it” before pleading for help. Following the assault,
an
ambulance attended the driver’s house. He then took himself to hospital due to his head injuries. He is now waiting for an MRI scan after visiting his GP who has
advised him to stay at home to recover and not return to work. General manager of 001 Taxis, Amir Khan said: “We have CCTV footage which has been passed onto the police and will be working with them to try and catch the people involved. “We hold the safety of all our drivers and passengers in the highest regard and do everything we can to both mitigate risk, but also deal with any incidents should they occur. A Thames Valley police spokesman said: “An investigation is ongoing, anyone with information please call 101 quoting the reference 43230462276.”
COLCHESTER CABBIE PUNCHED IN FACE BY PASSENGER WHO SMASHED HIS WING MIRROR
A taxi driver was punched in the face by an "aggressive" passenger who smashed his wing mirror. The cabbie was driving the passenger home in Colchester when they became “very agitated and aggressive”. The driver was punched in the face, verbally abused and had his wing mirror broken during the ugly incident at the weekend. The fare reportedly refused to leave the taxi and so had to be taken back to the city centre where other cabbies could step in to help. Dave
Harris, chairman of
Colchester Council’s licensing committee, called for tougher action against nightmare pas- sengers. He said: “The driver reported this
62
incident to the police but sadly he has not had any feedback yet. “Taxi drivers provide a much- needed service and do not deserve to be treated in this way when in public carrying out their job. “The days of taking risks when working should be long gone and I condemn any actions against taxi drivers, health workers, bus drivers, police officers and others.” “As licensing committee chairman I ask that stiffer investigation and action is taken to deter crimes against the taxi trade to ensure the safety of the drivers and their vehicles. One Colchester cabbie, who has ferried passengers for 20 years, said he feels those working in the trade could be better supported.
Speaking anonymously, he said North Station Road has become a particularly troublesome spot for picking up fares at the weekend. “It is supposed to be a non- drinking road but every time I drive through there you’ve got people drinking in groups,” he said. “It has left me thinking ‘why the hell haven’t they
put any
enforcement down there?’.” However, the taxi driver said incidents of passengers assaulting drivers and criminals damaging cabs have reduced since the start of this year. In January, the Gazette reported there had been an “epidemic” of attacks which included windows being caved in and tyres being slashed.
NOVEMBER 2023 PHTM
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