Former boxer banned from driving after operating unlicensed taxi
Saturday, July 02, 2011
Former boxer Tony Booth has been fined £600 for operating an unlicensed taxi.
Humberside Police and Hull City Council have been targeting bogus and unlicensed vehicles following a spate of sexual assaults.
The professional boxer, who once sparred with Joe Calzaghe, was caught using his private hire taxi in Hull city centre in an area designated for public hackney carriages.
His cab was not licensed as a public hackney carriage and he had no insurance for his Renault Megane Scenic when he was stopped by the police in George Street last October.
The 40-year-old, of Hardy Road, Hedon, has been fined £600 by Hull Magistrates' Court, ordered to pay a £15 victim surcharge and has been banned from driving for six months.
The council has been cracking down on unlicensed vehicles to protect the public from serious crimes.
Inspector Barry Longstaff, from Hull's Violent Crime and Licensing Team, said: "Bogus taxi offences are rare across Hull, but when incidents happen, they can be very serious, sometimes leading to sexual assaults.
"In Hull,
we are lucky to have a large number of designated taxi ranks where people can wait for hackney carriages and a number of private hire taxi companies in order to get the public home safely."
"Along with night buses run by both EYMS and Stagecoach, people have options of how to get home rather than ever risking a bogus taxi."
The crackdown follows indecent assaults on women in the city by bogus taxi drivers in the past eight months. Detectives are still hunting a sex attacker who posed as a taxi driver and targeted women in incidents in March this year and November last year.
They believe a registered sex offender could be behind the incidents.
Booth has no connection to these incidents.
To ensure taxis are safe, customers should check there is a plate on the rear of the vehicle and the registration numbers, colour, make and model of the taxi match.
The driver should also show customers their badges which has photo ID.
Councillor John Hewitt, portfolio holder for neighbourhoods and communities, said: "When incidents are reported and we have the evidence to take action, such as in this case, we will always prosecute and press for the maximum penalty."
"Public safety is our primary concern."
"But let's not forget that unlicensed taxis undermine the legitimate taxi business by under-cutting costs and eroding consumer confidence."
Booth, who retired in 2008 after 166 professional fights, is also facing separate allegations, due to be heard at Hull Crown Court, and is currently remanded in custody.
Source; http://www.thisishullandeastriding.co.u ... story.html
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