Taxi Driver Online

Shocking video shows taxi driver being racially abused

https://www.worcesternews.co.uk/news/20 ... ly-abused/ (To view video)

THIS is the moment a taxi driver in Worcester was subjected to vile racist abuse while sat at a taxi rank in the city.

A series of upsetting videos show two men wearing hoodies attacking a taxi driver, who cannot be seen on the video and who remains in their car throughout.

The shocking footage has been labelled as 'disgusting' and 'horrifying' with claims taxis should be fitted with panic buttons.

The two men can be seen trying to open the door of the taxi before punching, kicking and headbutting the car.

They hurl a series of racist slurs at the taxi driver and threaten them with violence.

Caught on camera, the ordeal lasts for several minutes before the two men eventually walk away.

Worcester News understands the incident has been reported to the police and has asked West Mercia Police for a comment.

Haris Saleem, from the Worcester Taxi Drivers Association, said: “I’m lost for words. This video is disgusting, horrifying and terrifying.

“For something like to happen in the city centre, a driver being attacked like that and abused racially. It is shocking.

“It’s not always reported but this type of thing does happen quite regularly. If a driver is on his own, or has been out of town, you don’t know what he has been through.

“We all get these kinds of remarks or abuse, but we try to ignore it.”

Mr Saleem said he believes the driver is doing ok, other than being shook up.

“I thought the driver - apart from being terrified - did a brilliant job,” he said. “The temptation can be to get out and try to defend yourself or protect your vehicle, but this could have been so much worse if he’d got out of the car.”

Mr Saleem suggested that taxis be fitted with panic buttons, enabling them to call for police backup quickly and discreetly if the driver feels they are in danger.

“This is our livelihood, we’re out there serving the community and we need protection.”

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IDFIMH

Refused service, presumably

Slightly strange, though, that zero evidence of any traffic movements or whatever. There's at least one other cab on the rank, but couldn't see any movement in terms of passing vehicles, and zero sound of any traffic at all nearby or in the distance. And zero evidence of any other people in the area either, even when the camera pans out a bit

It's presumably very late at night and/or midweek rather than weekend and/or the rank is in an odd location well away from traffic and people

Man arrested after racist attack on taxi driver in Worcester

A 21-year-old man has been arrested following a racist attack on a taxi driver and the assault of a police officer in Worcester.

Police were called to The Cross in Worcester at 12.50am on Wednesday, March 30 following a report of anti-social behaviour.

Officers found a taxi had been attacked and the driver subjected to an aggressive verbal assault which police believe was racially motivated.

“This incident is being treated as a hate crime,” said a West Mercia Police spokesperson.

“A police officer was also later assaulted.

“A 21-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage, racially aggravated harassment and assaulting a police officer. He has been released under investigation while enquiries continue.”

The victim is being supported by specialist officers.

Chief Inspector Jamie Francis said: “We are continuing our hate crime investigation into the assault on a taxi driver that took place in Worcester during the early hours of Wednesday morning.

“We take all reports of hate crime very seriously - no-one should be targeted for being themselves and we can never underestimate the devastating effect being a victim of a hate crime can have on people.”

Video footage surfaced last week showing a taxi driver being racially abused in Worcester.

In a series of upsetting videos, two men wearing hoodies can be seen trying to open the door of the taxi before punching, kicking and headbutting the car.

They hurl a series of racist slurs at the taxi driver and threaten them with violence.

Haris Saleem, from the Worcester Taxi Drivers Association, told the Worcester News: “I’m lost for words. This video is disgusting, horrifying and terrifying.

“For something like to happen in the city centre, a driver being attacked like that and abused racially. It is shocking.

“It’s not always reported but this type of thing does happen quite regularly. If a driver is on his own, or has been out of town, you don’t know what he has been through.

“We all get these kinds of remarks or abuse, but we try to ignore it.”

Anyone with information relating to the assault can report it via https://www.westmercia.police.uk/tua/tell-us-about/ quoting incident number 13i of March 30, 2022.

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IDFIMH

This seems to be the rank here. The big building to the immediate left is the Slug & Lettuce pub. (Although you may need to 'collapse' the side panel by clicking on the wee arrow to see the pub and rank properly).

But that big pub (and others, including a Wetherspoon's in the area) underlines what I said about the strange lack of traffic and people in a four-minute video.

It's midweek, but 0050 doesn't seem particularly late for the central area of a 100,000 population city, yet apart from the two nuggets in the video, it's like a ghost town

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Bet ... -2.2213795