Demand for extra officers to stop youths attacking taxis

A taxi driver suffered a large gash above his eye after being attacked by a gang of youths who had been throwing stones at his car in Ovenden, Halifax.

Several similar incidents of stones being thrown against taxi drivers have also been reported in the Illingworth and Ovenden areas.

In a joint statement from Ovenden ward councillors, Anne Collins, Bryan Smith and Helen Rivron, and the Illingworth and Mixenden ward councillors, Lisa Lambert, Dan Sutherland and Barry Collins, they said: “Together with the police, the fire brigade and our various partners, we’ve worked hard to develop a multi-disciplinary approach to tackling anti-social behaviour in north Halifax.

“The important thing now is to see the extra community support officers we’ve been promised by the West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner out and about in our streets and parks just as soon as possible”.

The cabbie was working on Ovenden Way at around 9.15pm on Wednesday, February 22, when a stone was thrown at his taxi causing a crack in the windscreen.

A large group of youths continued to throw stones at the vehicle and when he got out of his car, they began to punch and kick him.

Sergeant Darren Bedford, of Calderdale Police, said: “This incident resulted in a man receiving a minor injury, but it could have easily had more serious consequences.

“Throwing stones or any objects at cars is highly dangerous and it could led to an incident or collision resulting in serious injury or worse.

“We have increased patrols in the area and we are in the process of identifying the suspects. We also have spoken to other taxi drivers who have suffered similar attacks.

“I would urge anyone who is targeted in this way to report the incidents to the police as soon as you can.”

Anyone who has witnessed any incidents should contact Calderdale Police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.