Taxi Driver Online

Licence appeal by cabbie in porn case

A TAXI driver caught showing a hardcore porn film to passengers on his in-car DVD system has launched a bid to get his taxi licence back. Father-of-two Shaukat Ali Afsar, 43, illegally picked up two men in his private hire car at Leeds City Station to take them to the Evolution nightclub in Kirkstall.

But the driver, who has over 20 years' experience, did not know the pair were enforcement officers taking part in a joint operation between Leeds Council and Railtrack to try and stop private hire drivers from picking up fares from the station.

Afsar, of Duchy Drive, Heaton, Bradford, was fined and lost his Leeds Council licence to drive private hire cars when the authority decided he was not a fit and proper person. He had admitted displaying indecent material, driving without insurance and illegally plying for trade.

Yesterday he was at Leeds Magistrates Court to appeal against the council's rejection of his application for a new licence. The authority's licensing chief Des Broster said cab drivers were sometimes required to drive vulnerable people and children, so drivers had to be of a high standard.

The playing of the porn DVD was viewed as a very serious matter, he said. There were also some minor convictions on Afsar's record and complaints about plying for trade which added up to a pattern of behaviour, said Mr Broster.

The court heard that Afsar has recently been granted a taxi and private hire licence by Pendle Borough Council in Lancashire. The authorities in Pendle knew of his conviction. Afsar told magistrates that he had learned his lesson since the DVD incident 18 months earlier. He said he knew that plying for fares was wrong.

Under cross-examination, he said the two enforcement officers had enjoyed watching the DVD and had not asked for it to be turned off.
"It was two blokes – there were no children or females. It happened accidentally," he said. He claimed the two men had "got a bargain" because they had watched the DVD and been taken to their destination for no extra charge. "It was a pornographic DVD so they got a bargain out of it," he added.

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IDFIMH

Take your pick.

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IDFIMH

is he taking the pi**?

When I first read that I thought it meant there were two blokes on the DVD

I was wondering why he thought two blokes were less bad than a bloke and a woman

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Taxi Driver Online
www.taxi-driver.co.uk

Perhaps he means that since they got a 'bargain' the last time, in future he'll charge for it

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Taxi Driver Online
www.taxi-driver.co.uk

I know its an old one but I heard a story about this case last week.

I wonder if the good people of Pendle know how to assess a persons fitness and propriety?

CC

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

4. INTERVIEWS

(a) Shukat Ali Afsar

The Democratic and Legal Services Manager submitted a report in respect of Mr. Afsar.

RESOLVED

That a temporary private hire driver’s license be granted for 6 months with a strict warning that he must fully comply with all the legal and licensing requirements of a taxi driver. The licence could be renewed after 6 months subject to a clear CRB check.

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin