Sussex wrote:
Mersey cab drivers who held two teenage brothers to face charges
TWO taxi drivers have been charged with abduction – after allegedly holding two teenage brothers they suspected of vandalism in the back of a hackney cab. Phillip Naylor, 30, of Douglas Way, Kirkby and George Sealey, 58, of Deva Close, Kirkby, will appear before magistrates accused of two counts each of child abduction, which could see them jailed for up to seven years.
But news of the decision to press charges relating to the incident involving a 15-year-old and a 13-year-old, sparked anger among the Mereyside taxi community. Drivers demanded clarity on where they stand with those they believe have attacked their vehicles or committed offences against them.
They threatened direct action yesterday in a tense meeting with Merseyside Police and Alan Shone, Knowsley Council’s consumer protection manager. The drivers wanted to know why the council only took the decision to suspend Naylor and Sealey once the charges were laid on June 1. As the meeting closed they were making plans to protest in Kirkby.
Tony Carr, the Unite the Union representative for taxi drivers in the borough, said his colleagues had lost faith in the police and the council. He said: “The drivers don’t know what will happen. If someone refuses to pay a fair and they take them to the police station, then he could be done for kidnap.
“The lads don’t know if the police will arrest them or the people who have been violent or abusive or refusing to pay in their cab. “Nobody seems to want to be on our side, and what message does that send to the criminals? "They think they can just get away with it, it’s a carte blanche for them.”
Naylor and Sealey believe the brothers threw a brick at one of their cars on February 8, something taxi drivers say happens regularly on Merseyside streets. The schoolboys were then allegedly held in the back of one of the cabs on Saxon Way, Kirkby, before making their escape before police arrived. Both boys are thought to deny any wrongdoing.
At yesterday’s midday meeting at the Kirkby Unemployment Centre on Westhead Avenue, drivers expressed concern they were viewed as “low priority” by police who deal with incidents. Merseyside Police denied this..
Speaking to the drivers, Sergeant Kim Carter reminded them they could make citizen’s arrests or take offenders to police stations. She stressed “reasonable force” could be used as restraint. But one person at the meeting, who asked not to be named, said he felt the situation was now “clear as mud”.
He said: “They tell us we can make a citizen’s arrest, but you never know where you stand once the police turn up. “Look at what has happened to these drivers, they wanted to stop people from vandalising their cars and end up in the dock.”
Mr Carr, who drives a cab himself in the borough, said training for drivers was already provided. He told the ECHO: “At Unite we already deliver taxi driver training about dealing with customers, rights and what is expected.
“We do that for drivers working in Knowsley, Liverpool, Wirral and Sefton.“But it is still a sketchy area, it seems to depend on the attitude of the person, whether they give you a verbal telling off or book you for an offence. “It puts us in a precarious position.”
Drivers were also concerned about the suspensions imposed on Naylor and Sealey at the start of this month. They had been working since the incident, but when the Crown Prosecution Service decided to prosecute, their licences were withdrawn. Mr Shone said a decision would be taken on renewing the licences at the end of court proceedings.
A spokesman for Knowsley council said the decision to withdraw the licenses was taken “following a thorough police investigation”. Naylor and Sealey are due to appear at Knowsley Magistrates’ on June 17.
We've also had these threats from West Midlands Police of being charged with kidnapping in certain similar cases.
A few years ago, we were advised by a serving police constable attached to our Hackney licensing department to say to the offender the following words, "I am making a citizen's arrest on you and taking you to the nearest police station."
Apparently, this makes all the difference!
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