Taxi hijacked in knifepoint attack
TAXI driver robbed at knifepoint after picking up passengers in Mount Barker, Phillip Street.
A TAXI driver held at knifepoint and taken on a terrifying half-hour ride through Adelaide by a group of thugs - including two women who threatened to kill him - was more worried about the public than his own safety.
Amin Jan, 23, feared people would be killed when his mini-bus was hijacked by eight knife-wielding bandits and driven "recklessly" through the Hills early yesterday morning.
One man held a knife to his side and forced him into the back seat of the vehicle, while another took over the wheel and started speeding down the Princes Hwy towards the city.
Mr Jan, an engineering student who arrived in Australia from Pakistan in July and drives for Mt Barker Taxi Service, picked up the six men and two women from an address in the town's centre about 1.30am yesterday.
Once on the freeway, a male passenger in the front seat persuaded him to pull over so he could use the toilet. But when he returned to the vehicle the drama began.
"When he came inside the van he just put something on my neck, I thought it might be a ballpoint or something, I thought he was joking," Mr Jan said. "Then I was told to step out of the car and then I was sure that it was a knife. He just started to push it a little harder.
"Then he showed me, `I've got a knife', then he put it here (against my neck) again."
Mr Jan was then forced into the back seat where another man held the knife against his side and the first man took the wheel.
"The girls were like, `if you do something wrong we will kill you'," he said. "So many things were going in my mind ... what if he hits the van, maybe he'll kill somebody else."
When the journey finally ended just after 2am on Philip St, near the Adelaide Remand Centre, one of the men came at Mr Jan with scissors, cutting the cabbie's hand. The attackers stole the van's GPS unit and set fire to the front passenger seat before fleeing.
A police spokesman said inquiries had been made at the address where the group had been picked up. Detectives are also hoping to find security camera footage of the incident.
An unfazed Mr Jan said he will return to work this weekend. "I really like to drive the van .... and come across some really nice people every time, except this time."
In my opinion, all taxis should be installed with all necessery security features like CCTV. For more safety, all should have their equipment inbuild. So that nothing can be stolen from the taxis. Besides that, the safety of the taxi's driver should be improved. The drivers must have the basic self- defence skills, so they will not get panick when countering with the thugs. The taxi companies should upgrade the safety of the taxis, drivers as well as their passengers. This will encourage people to use taxis more often and satisfied with the services provided.
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