Taxi Driver Online

Same old, same old. Wasn't clear from the first half whether he was PH or HC, but reads like he was deffo part of a circuit of some kind.

But later it's specifically stated he wasn't HC, thus was illegally plying for hire.

But, for a change, no doubt about the victim's drunkenness, which is mentioned or alluded to several times


Taxi driver raped passenger after lying in wait in Sunderland for lone victim

https://www.sunderlandecho.com/news/cri ... nd-4642378



A taxi driver who took a passenger to a secluded spot and raped her after lying in wait for a victim to get in his car has been jailed for 12 years.

Ian Phillips had clocked-off and disabled his in-car camera, then lurked near pubs and bars in Sunderland in the early hours to attract potential prey.

Newcastle Crown Court heard when a woman, who was "ten-out-of-ten drunk" lost the rest of her group and got into his car alone, she was driven away and attacked.

The victim had been helped into his vehicle by well-meaning strangers who had noticed her struggling while waiting alone for a cab home by herself.

Married dad Phillips, 48, of Noble Street, Easington Colliery, denied rape but was found guilty by a jury after a trial.

He claimed he had clocked-off to do cash-in-hand work that night and the victim consented to what happened.

Judge Robert Spragg said the woman was far too drunk to consent to anything and that Phillips is a "high risk to members of the public".

The judge stressed that the majority of taxi drivers are "trustful and are trusted".

The court heard the victim had been out in Sunderland and was not a regular drinker but ended up, in her own words, "mortal drunk".

In the early hours of the morning she became separated from her group but spoke to one of them on the phone who told her to get a taxi home, thinking she would be safe.

The court heard she sat outside a bar, where she was struggling to see her phone screen, and was helped into Phillips' taxi by kind passers-by, who had no reason to suspect they were putting her in danger.

The victim's recollection of what happened next is patchy but she remembers being driven to a back lane and then a secluded spot in the city, and then being at her mother's home with injuries and ripped clothing.

She said in an impact statement her life has been "turned upside down" by what happened to her and she has flackbacks and terrors over what happened.

Judge Spragg said Phillips' reason for clocking off was not to get cash-in-hand work and added: "Your motive was far more sinister, trying to get lone, drunken women to your car.

"You were acting as a hackney driver, which you were not. You had deliberately turned the cameras off in your car, there was no good reason to turn the cameras off.

"I find you were parked there in the hope a drunken woman would get in the car and you could take advantage of her.

"When the complainant was delivered to you it as just what you were waiting for, you were waiting there in the hope a woman on her own would get into your taxi.

"This was planned by you, you were waiting there for a woman to present herself to you.

"If it had not been her you would have waited to get someone else."

The judge added that Phillips' behaviour was triggered by an "overwhelming sense of sexual entitlement" and a wish for control.

Judge Spragg imposed an additional five year extended licence period after the 12 year jail term and said Phillips must abide by a sexual harm prevention order and sex offender registration requirements for life.

Lee Fish, defending, said: "He has committed an extremely serious offence and he will have to come to terms with that."

he won't be praying on the vulnerable for a long time now !

_________________
lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

Different articles with some slightly different details, for what it's worth


County Durham taxi driver picked up drunk woman before driving her to the beach and raping her

https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/no ... d-29234746

Ian Phillips has been sentenced to 12 years in prison with an extended licences period of five years

A taxi driver picked up a drunk woman before driving her to the beach and raping her.

Ian Phillips was loitering in Sunderland city centre after finishing his shift during the early hours of the morning. Newcastle Crown Court heard how two passers-by took the victim to the 48-year-old's vehicle and asked him to take her home safely.

Instead of ensuring she returned home from her night out, he took her to the Hendon beach area of the city where he raped her. Phillips had already turned off the cameras in his taxi and logged off from work for the night.

Jane Waugh, prosecuting, said Phillips had turned off the cameras in his vehicle and waited for some time before picking up the woman. She said the victim was particularly vulnerable and had described herself as "mortal drunk".

The court in Newcastle heard the woman had been on a night out in Sunderland in February last year. She was so drunk that she didn't have any money and couldn't see the screen of her phone.

Two people, who were passing by, helped her into Phillip's taxi. The next thing she remembered was leaning against the back of a car and a man standing at the other side of the boot watching her.

The court heard how she can remember saying "Why are we here, I should be going home" and the man saying "Come on, come on"'. When she next opened her eyes, she realised she was in a car and was at Hendon beach.

The next thing she remembered was stumbling into her mother's home. The police were called when she began suffering from physical injuries and realised no money had been taken for a taxi.

In a victim impact statement, the woman she is suffering from severe anxiety and depression as well as suspected PTSD. She said she has had to move house, to be closer to her family, and give up her job.

The woman said: "The incident left me broken as a person. I have no self-esteem or confidence. I don't sleep because of flashbacks and night terrors.

"Having to go through the court case was stressful. He knew what he had done to me yet still made me go through a court case.

"I have a very long way to go to try and find my new normal. I don't think I will ever be the person I was before this."

When Phillips was arrested, he said the woman had come onto him and the sex was consensual. He claimed that he had already logged off from work so he could earn cash in hand. He also said he logged off to avoid being sent on longer jobs by the company he worked for at the time.

Phillips, of Noble Street, Easington Colliery, County Durham, denied rape but was found guilty by a jury following a trial.

Lee Fish, defending, told the court: "While this defendant has committed this very serious offence there's no suggestion he's behaved in this way before. He has no previous convictions."

The court heard how Phillips, who worked as a taxi driver for nine years, was living with his wife and two children at the time. His partner has since ended their relationship and removed him from the tenancy.

Judge Robert Spragg told Phillips: "This was a sustained and prolonged incident. You drove her to two different places, ending up at the beach where you raped her. There was a significant degree of planning in my judgement.

"As she said in the trial 'We should be able to trust taxi drivers' and the vast majority of taxi drivers are trustful and are trusted."

The judge said he was "absolutely satisfied" that he had been waiting there with his cameras turned off hoping to pick up a vulnerable woman in drink, who he could take advantage of.

He sentenced Phillips to 12 years in prison with an extended licences period of five years - a total of 17 years. Phillips must serve two thirds of his sentence before he can be considered for release.

He was also ordered to abide by a restraining order and a sexual harm prevention order.

And he picked the victim up at 5.30am, for what it's worth...

https://archive.is/hRc0K