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Burnley taxi driver assaulted in racist attack
10:31pm Tuesday 22nd April 2008
Comments (26)A TAXI driver has told how he feared for his life after he was punched in the face in a racially motivated attack.
Father-of-four Mohammad Hayat was attacked in his Vauxhall Vectra taxi after dropping a fare off in Morse Street, Burnley, on Saturday April 19.
The 39-year-old was left with a bleeding nose, grazes and cuts after the incident on the corner of Lyndhurst Road and Lebanon Street at 1.15am.
Police said they are investigating the unprovoked' attack as racially motivated and have appealed for witnesses after one man was arrested but released without charge.
Mr Hayat pulled up to the junction to turn left when a man standing outside a silver Volkswagon Polo on the wrong side of the road kicked his car.
The man racially abused the former caterer after Mr Hayat threatened to take down the parked car's registration number and pass it onto the police.
One of the men, standing in between the two cars, punched Mr Hayat in the face after a gang of gang five or six, some from inside the car, shouted racial abuse at him.
Mr Hayat, who works for Kings Taxis, in Burnley, said: "I heard a big bang and realised that he had kicked the driver's side.
"I asked him why had he done it and he shouted racist abuse at me.
"I told them I would take their car registration number down and report them to the police.
"Some of them came out of the car and came towards my car. One punched me in the face.
"I heard my car rock because they were thumping it. I got the registration number and drove round the corner.
"There was blood coming out of my nose.
"I was scared for my life. They attacked me without any reason."
Mr Hayat, who has been left with a black eye and a swollen nose, said he would carry on working as a taxi driver but that his wife and four kids, aged two, four, six and 18 were worried for his safety.
He said: "My family are worried about me driving but what can you do.
"I still have to work and earn a living."
DC Andy Ashworth said: "This was a completely unprovoked attack.
"Attacks against taxi drivers will not be tolerated and anyone with information should contact us straight away."
Anyone with information should contact Burnley CID on 01282 472272 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Your Say YourAsian Image
Elijah, Burnley says...
3:32pm Wed 23 Apr 08
top cat wrote:In Denial are you? Didn't you read the bit about
racist attack???wow thats not like taxi drivers to use that blag..everytime theres a incident invoving these death traps its"racist"!!!il bet money hes lying about the incident
"I asked him why had he done it and he shouted racist abuse at me.
But quoting yourself "il bet money hes lying about the incident" shows you won't even believe it anyway.
Racism is racism. This is a death trap carried out by racist thugs. Lock-em up and throw away the key.
JOHN MILES, burnley says...
4:40pm Wed 23 Apr 08
dents EVERY OTHER DAY THAT CLEARLEY DONT HAPPEN.POLICE ARE GETTING WISE TO THERE LIES
K FROM CRAWLEY, crawley w sussex says...
4:49pm Wed 23 Apr 08
top cat, burnley says...
4:49pm Wed 23 Apr 08
HUBBA HUBBA!
john miles, burnley says...
4:54pm Wed 23 Apr 08
J.P, burnley says...
5:00pm Wed 23 Apr 08
removals R me, my front room says...
5:46pm Wed 23 Apr 08
K FROM CRAWLEY wrote:we arnt thick you southern ****. wheres the proof it was racial? witness? no.
it was racist so GET IT INTO UR THICK SKULL!!!!!
speakup shaun, burnley says...
5:50pm Wed 23 Apr 08
Shaz, says...
6:37pm Wed 23 Apr 08
d bar, says...
6:53pm Wed 23 Apr 08
Taxi drivers have a hard job dealing with drunks or druggies who get into their cars.They have no idea who the next passenger is.Lets make one thing clear when a asian or black person gets attacked its all over the news paper.Then its called a racist attack.When a white person gets attacked or abused by a non white it does not make the press very often .When it does theres hardly a mention of it being racist.These are the facts ,like it or not.
The way things are going i can see the problems we had up duke bar happening again.An like last time it will be white people who get sent to jail an asians who get off with it.No one has ever been done for smashing colne road up or setting fire to the duke of york.Mr malik will have an idea who did this i susspect.
Lot of scum bags living in Burnley right now god an allah help this town.
topcats **** dad, stoneyholme burnley says...
7:56pm Wed 23 Apr 08
top cat, burnley says...
8:37am Thu 24 Apr 08
Blue Man, My Blue Heaven says...
7:21pm Thu 24 Apr 08
What colour are we talking here...? Green,purple,turqois
e,magenta?!
It's obvious that your psyché is stuck firmly in the 1950's,when ignorance was par for the course in regards to race...
where, here says...
8:17pm Fri 25 Apr 08
its surprising to hear from some people who have made comments here.
how bigotted and racists they are them self and not knowing from right to wrong.
welll these people will never learn.
may be they have been brought up like this.
K FROM CRAWLEY, crawley w sussex says...
9:18pm Fri 25 Apr 08
removals R me wrote:u DUMB people never think that u do hav racist people that do this sort of things.so get a life and get it in ur northern pee brain that IT WAS RACIST...NORTHERN MONKEY HAHAHAHAHA
K FROM CRAWLEY wrote: it was racist so GET IT INTO UR THICK SKULL!!!!!we arnt thick you southern ****. wheres the proof it was racial? witness? no.
K, crawley w sussex says...
9:21pm Fri 25 Apr 08
john miles wrote:CLEVER BLOKE........NOT!!! UR THE THICK ****
it was that racist they released the bloke that kicked the taxi....k from crawley whos thick??dummy
Scarecrow, Oxford says...
9:44am Sat 26 Apr 08
here, where says...
10:15am Sat 26 Apr 08
Scarecrow wrote:get a life man ur having a nightmare!!!!!
If the attacker had been Asian the whole assault would have gone unacknowledged by both the media and the PC police.
whalley ranger-blackburn, blackburn says...
3:49am Tue 29 Apr 08
Roxy, says...
3:00pm Wed 30 Apr 08
Scarecrow wrote:no im sure we'd have ppl live you screaming about it every oppourtunity you get.the attack was wrong full stop regardless of the victim being asian or white.
If the attacker had been Asian the whole assault would have gone unacknowledged by both the media and the PC police.
Anyone who believes taxi drivers do not get dangerous racist (asian or white) fares are plain ignorant.
Nas, Blackburn says...
11:48am Fri 2 May 08
speakup shaun wrote:Funny how you people always claim that black on white is never racist.
Isnt it funny that white on black is racist and quickly called so but black on white never is ?... first white on black racist incident ive seen in a few eeks its all been the other way recently but never called rscist...
It is always, when it is white on black it is only racist as we know for a fact, the rest are like you and say no it is not, even when it blatently is. Even the police say its not, even after you are told that you were racially abused.
Looks like the police are learning slowly after a few of them have been sorted out.
Nas, nas_000_786@hotmail.
com says...
11:55am Fri 2 May 08
Scarecrow wrote:Yeah right, more like its on the tele - BBC News, stop trying to justify racism. And stop trying to turn tables.
If the attacker had been Asian the whole assault would have gone unacknowledged by both the media and the PC police.
The fact is that asians & muslims are being victimised, by white racists across the country. When asians retaliate they are given long term jail sentences like the people of Bradford riots, burnley riots, and oldham riots, yet the whites are let away.
Police are more tolerant of whites, yet will arrest asians for nothing.
What about the 10x more likely chance of an asian being stopped by a police officer.
What about the longer sentences asians get than whites.
What about the % of asians in jail in comparison to the % of whites its not parallel to the amount in the population. You may argue that they commit more crime, but then who are you kidding?
ENGLISH N PROUD, SEND THEM BACK says...
10:41pm Tue 1 Jul 08
England Born - England Bread - Shoot the pakis in the head.
Andrew, UK says...
9:39pm Fri 11 Jul 08
Flashgun teamed up Davidson Garrett a poet, actor and taxi cab driver in New York City. Davidson Garrett has documented his experiences in a recently published book of poems entitled: King Lear of the Taxi: Musings of a New York City Actor/Taxi Driver. The crew filmed local cab drivers in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire UK where all the footage was shot. Davidson Garrett provided the voice-over (recorded in a studio in NYC). All the footage in the film is cited in Garrett's work King Lear of the Taxi. The film carries a serious message, especially in light of the violence experienced against taxi drivers in UK (see e.g., www.bbc.co.uk/inside
out/content/articles
/2007/10/31/westm...
).
To view the film click here: www.youtube.com/watc
h?v=ujLyiHJoHbI
Jay, London says...
12:44am Sat 20 Sep 08
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top cat, burnley says...
1:19pm Wed 23 Apr 08