Middlesbrough taxi man cleared of assault A CABBIE has been cleared of inappropriately touching a passenger as he dropped her off.
A jury took less than half-an-hour to clear Saghir Ahmed of sexual assault at Teesside Crown Court.
It followed a complaint by a passenger who alleged the driver had touched her leg and asked for her number.
The 46-year-old had strenuously denied the allegation and branded it as “a lie” in court.
Yesterday, a jury found him not guilty.
Judge George Moorhouse told him: “You’re free to go.”
Ahmed, of Abingdon Road, Middlesbrough, had denied the sexual assault charge throughout his trial this week.
Earlier, the jury had heard from his alleged victim, who cannot be identified.
The young woman claimed the taxi driver had taken her and her mother home from Asda, in Thornaby, on September 2 last year.
She said that as she prepared to leave the taxi, Ahmed placed his hand on her thigh and asked for her phone number.
However, Richard Bennett, defending, claimed the woman had made up the allegation.
He said that during the journey the woman had turned around to speak to her mother in the back seat and had twice obstructed the driver.
Mr Bennett said the woman had vowed to complain about Ahmed’s “attitude” after he told her off.
The court heard the allegation was not made to police until five days after the alleged incident - following a complaint to his employer and a meeting at a taxi licensing office.
“That’s not because of a sexual assault. It’s because you wanted him sacked,” said Mr Bennett.
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