IPCC orders reinvestigation of Maidenhead taxi driver's case THE police watchdog has ordered Thames Valley Police to re-investigate complaints about a case involving a taxi driver who was falsely charged with assault - resulting in him losing his business.
Father-of-three Davinder Singh Sandhu, from Maidenhead, was charged in September 2010 of assaulting two woman outside the Fredrick's Hotel in Shoppenhangers Road after dropping them off in his taxi.
He was found guilty at Bracknell Magistrates Court in June 2011, but a subsequent appeal at Reading Crown Court in August 2011 overturned the judgement based on a lack of substantial evidence and CCTV footage.
Following the appeal, he complained to TVP about the investigation process which led to him being charged. The investigation concluded in July 2012, that the two officers involved had no case to answer.
However, the Independent Police Complaints Commission has upheld Mr Sandhu's appeal against the investigation and ordered TVP to re-investigate the complaint. A TVP spokeswoman said: "Thames Valley Police is currently revisiting the points made in the IPCC assessment into this matter. When the findings are completed they will be forwarded to Mr Sandhu. At this stage, it would be inappropriate to comment further." The 49-year-old has been unable to get his taxi driver's licence back from the Royal Borough since the initial judgement.
Mr Sandhu, who had been a taxi driver since 1996 and had a clean record up until the charge, says he has been unable to find work since the incident, lost his company Maidenhead and Berkshire Cars and has been forced to live on benefits to care for his three children aged five, 13 and 15 and disabled wife, who had a stroke in 2003. He said: "My life has been ruined by this. My business was taken away which lost me £100,000. It's been very stressful and I have done nothing wrong. I am a clean person and I want to get on with my life and work." A Royal Borough spokeswoman said: "Our officers say he is not a fit and proper person and the Licensing Panel agreed. The Magistrates Court found he was not a fit and proper person and the Crown Court echoed that."
The spokeswoman added both a magistrate and judge had made the statements.
Mr Sandhu successfully appealed in October 2010 against the suspension of his licence after the initial charge in September 2010 and was allowed to keep his licence until the end of the magistrates trial in June 2011.
Mr Sandhu obtained a Security Industry Authority door supervision licence in July 2012 in an attempt to find work which involves a thorough background check.
source:
http://www.windsorobserver.co.uk/news/m ... vers-case/
Login
Register
FAQ
