Passenger allegedly thrown out of taxi by cabbie who refused hire

Police are looking for a taxi driver who allegedly threw a passenger out of his vehicle in Wan Chai early Saturday morning.

The passenger, a woman of South Asian descent, got into a taxi on Fleming Road at around 5am. She asked to go to Happy Valley, but was rejected by the driver, who opened the vehicle’s back door and asked her to leave, Apple Daily reports.

After the woman refused to disembark the taxi and threatened to call the police, the driver reportedly snatched her mobile phone and threw it out of the car. Dashcam footage obtained from another taxi close by shows the cabbie making a sudden right turn on Jaffe Road with the door still open, causing the passenger to tumble out of the car and onto the road.

The driver of the second taxi, who witnessed the incident, rushed to the woman’s aid and helped her call the police. She was later taken to hospital with injuries to her limbs and face.

Barrister Albert Luk told EJ Insight that the driver could face charges including offences against a person, leaving the scene after being involved in a traffic accident, and robbery or theft for throwing the passenger’s phone away.