Taxi Driver Online

Record investigation: Cab boss who lost licence after sex claims over girl, 12, is still driving taxi

Jun 28 2010

A taxi firm boss accused of raping a 12-year-old girl has been caught working as a driver - despite being stripped of his badge.

Stephen Calderwood, 44, has never been charged despite being at the centre of a string of sex claims involving young girls. But he lost his permit because police fear he is a danger to the public.

However, a Record investigation has found the 44-year-old, who cops believe has several aliases, is still out every day driving a plated-up taxi.

Last year, Calderwood handed over his taxi interests "for free" to one of his telephone operators after new laws kicked in meaning booking offices had to be licensed.

During our investigation, we saw Calderwood make several visits to the offices of his former firm - even though he claims to have nothing to do with it any more - as well as driving a taxi.

Police say Calderwood would be breaking the law by driving a taxi without a badge, and should be nowhere near the firm.

A source said: "He is a slippery character and a nasty piece of work.

"As far as we are concerned, if he is behind the wheel of the cab with the plates on, he is in business as a taxi driver .

"He is impersonating a taxi driver and the public should be aware not to travel with him."

Married dad-of-two Calderwood was spotted driving his eight-seater silver Mercedes Vito taxi - registration DK07 BUW - in Dunbartonshire and Glasgow.

The vehicle, which has blacked out rear windows, has a legitimate taxi plate issued by East Dunbartonshire Council.

But it is registered in the name of Calderwood's dad William, 65.

When Calderwood is not out in the taxi, he keeps it on his drive in a quiet suburban street in Bearsden, near Glasgow.

Neighbours in the Baljaffray area say Calderwood has become notorious in the few years he has lived there because of his criminal past and a string of sex allegations.

Despite a string of serious accusations, Calderwood has never been convicted of any sex crimes.

But because there was a pattern to the alleged offending, police decided to reveal details of the allegations to Scots councils who licence taxis and radio bases.

They included an incident in March 2007, when a 12-year-old girl claimed she had been raped by Calderwood in his taxi.

A police dossier on Calderwood - seen by councils and the Record - reveals he admitted picking up the girl and a 15-year-old boy on the day in question, then stopping to buy six beers and a bottle of Buckfast.

Calderwood admitted he watched the boy drink some of the alcohol in the taxi - while the young girl took two-and-a-half ecstasy tablets.

The police dossier, prepared in the name of Strathclyde Chief Constable Steve House, said: "The girl reported that Mr Calderwood had locked the doors and of the vehicle and stated she would not be let out until she had sex with the 15-year-old boy.

"Mr Calderwood admitted to then being alone in the taxi with the girl for around two hours.

"He denied any sexual contact with the girl. A medical examination of the girl revealed injuries consistent with recent sexual intercourse.

"A report outlining the circumstances was submitted to the fiscal for consideration. However, no further proceedings were taken in this matter."

The report added: "Mr Calderwood was not interviewed by police until a week after the incident and, as a result, the opportunity to retrieve forensic evidence was lost."

In another incident in his cab, in December 2008, it was claimed that Calderwood offered cash to two girls aged 13 and 15 to "interact sexually with each other" after producing sex aids from his glove compartment.

Calderwood admitted to police that he had been in "regular telephone contact" with the 13-year-old girl but thought she was 16. He denied the allegations when grilled by cops, and no action was taken.

The same 13-year-old complained to police again in April 2009 that Mr Calderwood had called her mobile phone from a withheld number and made "extreme sexual remarks".

Police said: "From references made about her father, it was apparent the male on the other end of the phone knew her personally and she identified Mr Calderwood from his voice.

"Mr Calderwood was again interviewed but there was insufficient evidence to substantiate a report to the procurator fiscal."

In another incident, Calderwood was investigated for exposing his penis to a girl of nine on a patch of communal land near his home in Bearsden.

He was found not guilty of lewd, indecent and libidinous practices against a child.

But the police dossier said: "Although there was insufficient evidence to convict him, he admitted he did expose his naked penis to the nine-year-old but claimed it was not deliberate as he was urinating and she got a fright and ran away."

The police report on Calderwood was sent to councils af ter his former telephone operator, Nicola Stewart, 22, applied for booking office licences in Glasgow and East Dunbartonshire.

Miss Stewart runs Great Western Taxis with her footballer boyfriend Kenny Connolly, 23, a midfielder recently released by Ayr United.

They operate as Great Western Taxis in East Dunbartonshire and Clyde Radio Cars in Glasgow.

However, they were knocked back for a booking office licence by Glasgow City Council last month because of links with Calderwood.

He owns the shop unit in Moraine Drive, Drumchapel , where Clyde Radio Cars is based.

Lawyers acting for the couple told councillors Calderwood no longer had links with the firm but police argued that he was profiting as he was getting rent.

Councillors in Glasgow agreed, and refused the new owners the licence. The company are still trading under appeal in Glasgow.

The second booking office licence was granted by East Dunbartonshire Council for a premises at the rear of Baljaffray shopping centre, which is not owned by Calderwood.

Miss Stewart had worked as a taxi controller for Calderwood since 2008. The police dossier said she told officers there was a "verbal agreement" she could take over the firm "for free" so long as she took on an outstanding phone bill of £10,000 .

The firm charges £80 a week to drivers for radio hire - a turnover of up to £312,000 a year.

Calderwood refused to comment on the sex allegations when we approached him yesterday. And he threatened our reporter when we asked him about the taxi issue.

We have made the details of our investigation available to police.

Chief Inspector Stuart Neill, head of licensing at Strathclyde Police, said: "We appreciate the Record bringing this to our attention.

"An active investigation is being carried out."

The owners of Great Western Taxis and Clyde Radio Cars did not respond to requests for comment.

And Calderwood's dad was not available for comment at his home in Springburn, Glasgow.

Have you been picked up by Calderwood? Call 0141 309 3251 or email reporters@daily record.co.uk

Source; dailyrecord.co.uk

_________________
Kind regards,

Brummie Cabbie.

Type a message, post your news,
Disagree with other members' views;
But please, do have some decorum,
When debating on the TDO Forum.

Just the kind of person that needs clamped down on.

The plate in his dads name needs to be revoked.
And the radio company shut down.

Both were clearly allowing him to operate and that makes them unfit to hold a licence.

But you've sold out Frank, "in the process of putting the money into another business" like you give a shi*?

_________________
All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.
George Orwell, "Animal Farm"

gary gary gary,

What are you babbling about

Whether I am a taxi driver or a member of the public it makes no difference.

My comments stand.

Yeah, you don't give a shi*-pric*

_________________
All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.
George Orwell, "Animal Farm"

Oooohhh uncle fester we are aggresive r we not

Correction - Frank's in the process of putting money into a business, not another

_________________
Caledonian Cabbie

The Cambridge dictionary lists the meaning of a business as "an organization (company) that sells goods or services for profit".

In what way do you think that operating a taxi is not covered by that?

Or have you just lowered yourself to repeat garys little slogans without even thinking for yourself?

Just in case you are unable to read the whole thread,

This is what I posted and gary did not seem to like.


"Just the kind of person that needs clamped down on.

The plate in his dads name needs to be revoked.
And the radio company shut down.

Both were clearly allowing him to operate and that makes them unfit to hold a licence."

I was talking about the plate, not the taxi itself.

By "business" I mean some kind of commerial activity. The plate only has a value due to the monoply, thus hardly based on commerce.

Indeed, based on the complete opposite.

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Caledonian Cabbie

Couldn't agree more, Frank.

Now what about people who encourage the abuse of people engaging in a commercial activity resulting from a business decision?

_________________
Caledonian Cabbie

I'm glad to see the first line in your post,

but you started to waffle by line two.

No-one in the Edinburgh taxi business is encouraging anyone to abuse anyone else.

So you've forgotten what you said about the RHS rank already, Frank:

_________________
Caledonian Cabbie

I was only pointing out the realities of life.

I was not encouraging anyone to do so.

If you take a job as a pub doorman / policeman / traffic warden / social worker / enviromental health officer etc etc, then you can only expect to recieve some abuse. That is reality.
The same applies to a taxi marshall who is instructed to stop certain taxis from trading in certain places.

I don't know about you, but that is the world I live in.

But never the less, This was a rather important and serious thread, so if you simply want to try to have a go at me, perhaps you could start a new thread.

Just the kind of person that needs clamped down on.

The plate in his dads name needs to be revoked.
And the radio company shut down.

Both were clearly allowing him to operate and that makes them unfit to hold a licence.