Taxi Driver Online

Taxi driver may be left partially blinded after alleged 'barbaric' assault by teen

https://www.belfastlive.co.uk/news/belf ... d-17607135

The teenager is accused of repeatedly kicking the man to the head during an alcohol-fuelled attack over a £5 fare

A taxi driver may be left partially blinded after a teenage passenger allegedly subjected to him to a “barbaric” assault over a £5 fare, the High Court heard today.

Dylan McGrinder, 18, is accused of repeatedly kicking the man to the head during an alcohol-fuelled attack near Strabane, Co Tyrone in the early hours of January 13.

Prosecutors said the victim sustained a fractured jaw and has difficulty hearing in one ear. He was also left with severe facial swelling and a footprint mark on his throat.

Although the full extent of his injuries remains unclear, a Crown lawyer disclosed: “Medical staff have continued concerns he may lose the sight in one eye.”

McGrinder, of Glebe Gardens in Sion Mills, faces charges of causing grievous bodily harm with intent, criminal damage and making off without paying the £5 fare. A judge was told he has no memory of carrying out the assault but accepts the victim’s version of events.

The court heard McGrinder was picked up at Abercorn Square in Strabane and taken to Sion Mills after failing to obtain money from an ATM machine to pay for the journey.

He allegedly launched an attack when the taxi driver suggested going to a relative to obtain cash, punching him about the head and face.

McGrinder then continued to kick him while he was on the ground, according to the prosecution. At one point the victim managed to get back into his car and close the door just before a wing mirror was kicked off.

McGrinder told police he had drunk ten bottles of beer and spent £80 on vodka in two bars in Strabane. He said he remembered getting a taxi and realising he had no money, as well as stopping at a cash machine and telling the driver to return in the morning for payment.

Despite having no recollection of the actual assault, he accepted it was probably the victim’s blood on his clothes and trainers.

Opposing bail, prosecution counsel contended: “The aggression shown in this attack on a defenceless individual already working in a high-risk job over something as trivial as a £5 taxi fare would suggest the applicant, especially with drink on board, does not have the ability to control himself.”

A defence barrister acknowledged it was “an outrageous incident” involving an alleged attack on a man doing his best to get his drunken client home.

“Whilst he has no recollection of the assault he did not seek to contradict in any way (what the complainant said),” he added.

“This is a young man finding it almost impossible to rationalise his behaviour on the night and the results that has had.”

Adjourning the bail application, Lord Justice McCloskey said further guarantees were needed from proposed sureties.

He also stated: “The injured party in this case was the victim of a barbaric and prolonged assault. He found himself utterly defenceless in the circumstances, and but for his entirely fortuitous ability to get back in the taxi and close the door he may well have lost his life.”

Well if he can't remember it then he doesn't have any option other than to accept it.

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IDFIMH

Interesting comments about the accused being 'safer inside', but I suppose it's a bit different in Northern Ireland


Teen accused of ‘barbaric’ assault on taxi driver granted bail

https://www.derryjournal.com/news/crime ... -1-9215163

A teenage passenger accused of breaking a taxi driver’s jaw in a “brutal and barbaric” assault over a £5 fare has been barred from having any contact with the victim’s firm.

The prohibition was imposed on Dylan McGrinder as he was granted bail on allegations that he repeatedly kicking the man to the head during an alcohol-fuelled attack near Strabane, Co Tyrone in the early hours of January 13.

Lord Justice McCloskey decided the 18-year-old can be released from custody despite being informed of intelligence stating: “He’s safer inside.”

McGrinder, of Glebe Gardens in Sion Mills, faces charges of causing grievous bodily harm with intent, criminal damage and making off without paying the £5 fare.

Prosecutors revealed the victim sustained a fractured jaw, severe facial swelling, a footprint mark on his throat, and has difficulty hearing in one ear.

Medical staff had also raised concerns that the man may lose the sight in one eye, but it has been confirmed there is no longer an imminent risk to the eye.

McGrinder had been picked up at Abercorn Square in Strabane and taken to Sion Mills after failing to obtain money from an ATM machine to pay for the journey, the court heard.

He allegedly became violent when the taxi driver suggested going to a relative to obtain cash, punching him about the head and face.

The teenager then continued to kick him while he was on the ground, according to the prosecution.

At one point the victim managed to get back into his car and close the door just before a wing mirror was kicked off.

McGrinder told police he had drunk ten bottles of beer and spent £80 on vodka in two bars in Strabane.

He said he remembered getting a taxi and realising he had no money, as well as stopping at a cash machine and telling the driver to return in the morning for payment.

Although he claims to have no memory of carrying out the assault, his lawyers confirmed he accepts the driver’s account of what happened.

As the bail application resumed, a prosecution counsel detailed new intelligence which she said was not being linked to any known group.

“The height of the information received is ‘He’s safer inside’,” she said.

However, Lord Justice McCloskey responded: “This court will not be dictated to by sinister elements of that kind.”

He granted McGrinder bail to live at an undisclosed address, with conditions including an exclusion zone around Strabane and Sion Mills, and a ban on contacting the victim or his firm.

Referring to the alleged attack, he described it as “a brutal and barbaric assault on a law abiding member of society providing a service to the community late at night”.

Maybe a deterrent to other scumbags.

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IDFIMH