A woman taxi driver has quit her job in disgust after suffering sexual assault and harassment from drunk male passengers.

Zoe Temple has bravely spoken out about the abuse she had to endure from a minority of men in her two years working as a driver in the Llandudno area.

Zoe, 28, told North Wales Live how she has been touched, stroked and spoken to inappropriately.

But the final straw for her came on Saturday, February 2 when she had to fight off a passenger who was trying to kiss her on the mouth.

On Boxing Day 2017 she was also subjected to a sexual assault by another male passenger which was investigated by police.

Zoe, who also works as a teaching assistant, waived her automatic right to anonymity to highlight the abuse.

She said: "A minority of drunk men seem to think it's ok to touch, kiss, and/or speak inappropriately to female taxi drivers.

"On Boxing Day in 2017 I picked up a man from Llandudno train station who was very drunk.

"He sat in the passenger seat in the front of the car, and whilst I was driving on the A55, he started stroking my thighs and my arm, kissing my arm and stroking my back, and told me how we were going home to have sex with each other.
   'It's not ok to touch or kiss'

"He said I can't believe I've 'pulled' you, to which I responded that I was his taxi driver."

She continued: "At one stage he even grabbed the steering wheel of the car and called me a 'bitch' when I tried to push him away.

"I couldn't stop the car, as it was dangerous and I was worried what would happen to him if I threw him out on the hard shoulder as he was so drunk."


Zoe, who is set to study for a master's degree in speech and language therapy, said she dropped the man in a well lit part of Rhyl, and then phoned the police.
  'I felt totally violated'

The force investigated the incident but never managed to track the man down.

She said: "In my opinion the police didn't take it seriously enough. I received a text message from the police saying nothing more could be done to track the man down, a call explaining that would have been better I think.

"No support was offered from the police. Conwy Council could also perhaps review how things are done/the safety of both male and female drivers."

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Councillors in Bridgend have supported proposals for a national database of taxi drivers and private hire operators in Wales.

According to reports by Wales Online, at the moment there is no legal requirement for councils to share information with one another which might help them make decisions when they issue licenses.

Welsh local authorities set their own licensing standards leading to fears some drivers are applying for licenses in areas where standards are lower and then operating in areas whose standards they don’t meet – and where enforcement action cannot be taken against them.

There is no legislation which enables a council to take enforcement action against a driver licensed in a different local authority.

Licensing policy officer Daniel Cook is reported to have told councillors of Bridgend Council’s licensing committee: “The proposal to create national standards operating throughout Wales would hopefully reduce the risk of applicants choosing to shop around for lower standards.

“At the moment if a driver is refused a licence in Bridgend no-one in the 21 other local authorities would be aware of that.

“If they had received a criminal conviction that would show up on a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check but when their behaviour was questionable and didn’t lead to a conviction there is no way for other authorities to know.”

Councillors voted in favour of authorising the head of Shared Regulatory Services to respond to the consultation on behalf of the council.

They said they supported proposals for a shared database and the creation of national standards but said they preferred the option of allowing local authorities to continue to have responsibility for licensing taxis and private hire operators as opposed to control being passed into a national licensing authority.

Source: Wales Online 
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 STOKE

A taxi driver has been jailed for seven years after being convicted of sexually abusing a woman in his cab.

The 48-year-old father-of-nine agreed a £10 fare to take his victim home following her night out with friends in Hanley and she sat in the back of the cab.

But he asked her to sit in the front of the taxi before touching her, kissing her face and groping her breasts.

The victim pleaded with him to let her get out of the cab and her ordeal finally came to an end when he eventually stopped near Park Hall.

Now Khan, of Newshaw Walk, Hanley, has been convicted of assault by penetration and two charges of sexual assault following a trial at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court this week.

The court heard the woman - who cannot be named for legal reasons - left Hanley at 2.45am.

Stoke on Trent Live reported that prosecutor Tom Kenning told the jury: “She left on her own and looked for a taxi. The first taxi driver she tried said he would charge £15 to take her home but the second taxi, driven by the defendant, agreed to take her for £10.

“She got in the back and he said, ‘You seem like a nice girl’. She said she had left early on her own because she had work in the morning. He said, ‘Why don’t you get in the front'? and she did. She thought he was being pleasant. If she had not had a drink she may have been alerted to what he was intending to do.

Tawab Khan has been jailed for seven years after being convicted by a jury of assault be penetration and two offences of sexual assault
Tawab Khan has been jailed for seven years after being convicted by a jury of assault be penetration and two offences of sexual assault

“He touched her and tried to kiss her. She said, ‘No, stop’. He continued driving.

“He said, ‘You are a nice girl, you are a beautiful girl'. She became concerned. He grabbed her breasts. It became clear he was not going the most direct route to her home.

“He put his hand on her leg and sexually assaulted her. She repeatedly asked to be let out. He eventually did. She was upset and called the police.”

The court heard police arrested Khan later that morning. He told officers the woman had groped him.

In a victim statement the woman says she has suffered panic attacks and flashbacks since her ordeal and now barely goes out.

Paul Cliff, mitigating, said Khan is a committed community member who is involved in the North Staffordshire volleyball team.

He came to this country from Afghanistan after being targeted by warlords due to him being a successful businessman. Six of his nine children are still financially dependant on him.

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