Assaulted cabbie let down by police service failures Published: 19/08/2012 14:00 - Updated: 20/08/2012 09:48A taxi driver assaulted by two passengers who refused to pay their fare has hit out at police after claims he was told the crime wasn’t serious enough to investigate.
The 50-year-old cabbie, from Kempston, who didn’t want to be identified through fear of reprisals, says he was pushed in the chest and had his vehicle damaged as they made off without paying for the £8 trip.
He says he picked up three customers in Bedford High Street and headed towards Riverview Way in Kempston at around 1.30am last Sunday. The driver said one passenger got out with the two remaining men – described as white about 19 to 20 and speaking with Birmingham accents – asked to be taken to King William Road. The driver was assaulted and had his cab damaged as they ran off from the scene.
Bedfordshire Police have issued an apology to the victim admitting he didn’t receive a good enough service.
The victim said: “The officers who came out were very good but I told the police where the men were going, what they looked like their age and that they had a Birmingham accent.
“I even offered to knock on every door in the road to find them but I was later told that the crime wasn’t serious enough to investigate and that the loss of fare was a civil matter.
“I picked them up from outside Tesco in Bedford High Street but I’m told there’s no CCTV and the next day I got a letter from the police saying it had been evaluated and that the offenders couldn’t be identified. How can the crime be looked at so quickly?” Earlier this year Bedfordshire on Sunday launched its Cabbie and Passenger Safety (CaPS) campaign which has called for better protection to drivers and passengers in the trade. Last month we took our campaign to the Transport Minister, Norman Baker, who presented our campaign to the Law Commission.
A spokeswoman for Bedfordshire Police said: “When the victim made his formal crime report later in the day, he did not receive the kind of service we would normally expect to provide. Making off without paying a fare is a crime, and the victim was pushed by the offenders as they made off which is a common assault.
“We take offences against taxi drivers very seriously, as they provide a service which is valuable to the community and need protection. Accordingly, the crime recording desk supervisor has now contacted the complainant, apologised to him, and has made an appointment for him to see a police officer.”
Source; http://www.bedfordshire-news.co.uk/News ... 082012.htm
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