Taxi driver bitten after passengers cause crash

A taxi driver was bitten after three passengers caused his car to crash by pulling at the steering wheel as the driver attempted to pull over.

One man has been arrested following the incident, which occurred on Riley Road in Brighton at around 8am on Saturday 1st October.

The 46-year-old local taxi driver had arrived in Brighton with his passengers from the A27 and had then travelled along Lewes Road and into Riley Road.

The passengers are alleged to have purposefully distracted the driver which led to his driving erratically. The men then pulled at the steering wheel and the taxi crashed into parked cars as the driver attempted to pull over.

Two of the passengers ran off, but the third was caught by the taxi driver, who was helped by members of the public. He was bitten on the cheek in the incident and suffered a cut to his finger. He was treated at the scene by paramedics.

PC Ian Noakes from Brighton Response Investigation team said: “This was very frightening for the taxi driver, who bravely chased and detained one of the alleged suspects with the help of members of the public.

“The other two suspects were not located despite officers conducting an extensive search of the area. Anyone who could help identify these men or who witnessed the incident is urged to contact police immediately.”

The man who has been arrested is a 21-year-old from London. He has been arrested on suspicion of causing actual bodily harm, criminal damage and driving offences and released on bail until 14 November pending further inquiries.

If anyone witnessed the incident, or thinks they saw the taxi driver on Lewes Road or Riley Road, they are asked to contact Sussex Police on 0845 60 70 999 quoting serial 395 of 1/10.

Related Posts:

• Female police officer knocked unconscious in Brighton attack
• Man arrested after Sainsbury’s siege
• Man attacked in North Laine as he walked to work
• CCTV image released of witness in Coldean racist assault probe
• Man arrested after Sainsbury’s bomb threat

Posted by Joseph Lewis on October 6, 2011. Filed under Latest News,Moulsecoomb. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry