Nothing in here to make it clear that the service being provided was illegal (the term used is 'unofficial' which is a bit softer).
But maybe that wouldn't fit the good v bad narrative in the way these things are often portrayed.
But maybe this explains why the recent article on the Bournemouth street checks mentioned the Facebook cars after several years
The perp's, er, modus is interesting, though. Think there's been a few variations on that sort of thing over the years
Bournemouth man tried to rob teenager who offered unofficial taxi rideshttps://www.dorset.live/news/dorset-new ... er-7849555He told his victim he had a knife
Image: Dorset Police/Dorset LiveA man tried to rob a teenager running an unofficial taxi service. The 17-year-old advertised on a Facebook group offering lifts for people in Bournemouth and Poole.
Volkan Cara Ertas contacted him using a false name and arranged to be picked up from a location in Wallisdown at 7.45pm on January 23. After directing his victim to two different locations, Ertas told him to head back toward Wallisdown and began to discuss the fare that was owed.
He asked for the teenager’s bank details and said his cousin had deposited £200 into the account. He said £30 was to pay the fare and the victim needed to withdraw the remaining £170 and give it to him.
The victim questioned this, at which point Ertas began to get angry and claimed he was owed £170. Ertas told his victim that he had a knife and lifted up his waistband, although the teenager could not clearly see whether there was a knife in there.
The victim was told to go to a cash machine and attempted to withdraw the money but was unable to. He said he would get someone else to come and give him the money so called a friend who lived nearby. The friend arrived and confronted the defendant, who fled the scene.
Ertas was subsequently identified by officers from CCTV and dashcam footage. As well as being given a prison sentence, he was also made the subject of a restraining order for a period of ten years, which prevented him from contacting his victim.
Ertas, aged 28, and of no fixed abode, was found guilty of a charge of attempted robbery by a jury at Bournemouth Crown Court. He was sentenced to four years and four months in prison on Wednesday (November 16).
Detective Constable Christian Bryant, of Dorset Police’s Priority Crime Team, said: “This was an extremely frightening incident for the young victim in this case and I am pleased that through our investigative work we were able to identify the offender responsible and bring him before the court."
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