Passenger put knife to taxi driver's throat and said 'give me everything or I will kill you'https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk ... t-18123468A taxi driver had a knife put to his throat and was told 'give me everything or I will kill you'. Andrew Smith, 35, has been jailed for three years and seven months after he subjected the taxi driver to the 'terrifying' ordeal.
Manchester Crown Court heard that just before midnight on May 16 last year, the driver was called to a job in Altrincham. Two men, one of which was Smith, got in and asked to be taken to a property not too far away, prosecutor Brian Williams said.
After arriving, the pair got back in and said they wanted to go back to the location where they were picked up originally. The other man got out during the journey, leaving Smith alone with the driver.
The driver, who was becoming concerned about whether the fare was going to be paid, confronted Smith. Smith said 'he would sort it out'. He then asked to be taken to another address in Altrincham, where the driver assumed he would get his fare.
But while Smith was in the car he produced the blade, which the driver described as a 'large kitchen knife'. Smith told the driver to 'give him everything now'. The driver said he didn't have anything, the court heard.
Smith held the knife to the driver's throat, and said 'give me everything or I will kill you'. Again the driver said he didn't have anything. Smith then said 'give me £20'. During the incident Smith was 'jabbing him with the tip of the knife', but no injury was caused.
Smith told the driver to leave the car, and he went to a nearby home to alert the police. He was arrested, and the driver was able to pick Smith out in an identification procedure. In a statement read to the court, the driver said his ordeal has left him 'very upset' and worrying about his job.
Defending, Jane Dagnall said Smith, who has been in custody since last September, suffers from 'complex mental health problems'. She said that custody has been a 'difficult experience' for Smith, who initially had paranoid thoughts and believed prison staff were 'poisoning his food'.
But he has since improved and has taken medication, the court heard. Ms Dagnall said the recent coronavirus lockdown in prison has caused problems for Smith, as he has spent 23 hours a day in his cell, and has had a lack of family contact.
Sentencing, Judge Patrick Field QC said: "This must have been nothing short of a terrifying experience. "To be threatened at knifepoint within the confines of a car must have been very frightening indeed for him. "The impact upon him of something like this is not to be taken lightly, and I don't take it lightly. It is a serious matter."
Smith, of Cravens Drive, Altrincham, pleaded guilty to attempted robbery, and possessing a knife.
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