Taxi Driver Online

Taxi drivers urged to report every attack as frequency of assaults increases

TAXI drivers need to get in gear and report crimes. That was the appeal from Humberside Police in the wake of yet another attack on a taxi driver. The advice came as the frequency of assaults and robberies on taxi drivers escalated this year.

As reported, some have been unable to return to work because of the trauma of being robbed at knifepoint. Chasey McIver, 24, admitted stabbing one driver in the neck and holding a knife to the throat of a female driver to demand money, while he was high on M-Cat. It was one of the most shocking attacks on drivers this year.

In the latest incident, in the early hours of Sunday, a 44-year-old taxi driver was kicked and punched as he sat in his stationery car. He did not wish to be named for fear of upsetting his family and causing them more worry.

A man approached him as he was parked in the Lidl car park in Cromwell Road, Grimsby at about 5am on Sunday. He suffered bruising to his arm, leg and head as the attacker opened the taxi door and launched a volley of blows and kicks. The driver lost a day's work as a result of the attack.

He said: "This bloke just came up to me and asked how much the journey to Immingham would cost. He suggested £10 but I told him it would be between £15 or £17. "He opened my door and started kicking me. I don't think he had any intention of getting a lift. He just wanted to fight and I was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"I can't let it put me off as I have a family to feed. All of us have to make a living as there are not many alternatives round here. "It is the first time in 13 years that I have ever had any bother." He said other taxi drivers and police were with him within moments after he raised the alarm.

Police officers are looking at CCTV from businesses and appealed for witnesses to come forward. A spokesman for police in North East Lincolnshire said: "Although we can't prevent every single crime against taxi drivers from occurring we can make sure we carry out thorough investigations once they are reported in order to try to bring those responsible to justice.

"We have carried out a lot of work in recent weeks and months to try to address the concerns of some taxi drivers who felt that if they were victims of crime they would not contact police and we have also looked at our processes when investigating this type of crime, so the impact on the victim is as minimal as possible from the point of them reporting the crime in the first place."

He added: "This is an ongoing process and will no doubt continue to evolve until we are happy that we have found the most effective way of investigating crimes against taxi drivers, which could be anything from someone making off without payment to a driver being assaulted, in order to increase the chances of detecting the crime while ensuring that the best interests of the victim are at the forefront of our work."

A 22-year-old man was later arrested in connection with the assault on the taxi driver on Sunday. He was released on bail pending further enquiries.

Anyone who has any information in connection with this incident was urged to contact Humberside Police on the non emergency number 101 quoting crime number 1934604 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.

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IDFIMH

I wonder how common that is?

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IDFIMH