Pick-up sting cabbie cleared

Taxi driver Dennis Street and supporters - won appeal against loss of his taxi licence

A POPULAR cabbie dragged through the courts following a sting by undercover PCSOs has won his appeal.

Dennis Street (54), of Briar Avenue, Watersheddings, burst into tears of relief in an emotionally-charged court case after 180 customers swayed magistrates.

Mr Street, a taxi driver for 12 years, was judged unfit by Oldham Council’s Licensing Committee after illegally picking up passengers.

The cabbie — at the time of the offence in January 2015 owner of Saddleworth-based Street Cars — was driving in Oldham Road when a man stepped in front of his car and asked to be taken to Uppermill.

Father-of-three Mr Street told Oldham magistrates he took pity on the man and the man he was with because it was “absolutely lashing it down” and they only wanted to go two minutes down the road.

After a one-minute trip costing £2 they told him they were undercover PCSOs and he had just illegally plied for trade. Private hire cars are allowed only to collect people who have booked in advance.

In committing that offence Mr Street was also uninsured. He pleaded guilty to both offences.

Months after the offence, his licence was revoked.

Mr Street told the court: “A man stood out in the road in front of my car, opened my door and asked me to take him and his friend to Uppermill. I told him to get in out of the rain. I really didn’t think the way I was entrapped was fair.

“In all my years of driving taxis I have never done this before and never would again. I felt sorry for the men, the weather was storm-like and they weren’t wearing overcoats.”

A “year of hell” followed for the driver. He sold Street Cars over fears he might have to fire staff at some point. He took a job with Pennine Taxis, since he retained his licence after appealing.

But after evidence from three character witnesses and another 180 who had written to the court, the bench decided he had been “unfortunate, yet foolish”, but was fit to hold a private hire licence.

Solicitor Robert Bimpson told magistrates that until the involvement of the PCSOs there was no risk to anybody from his client.

“This was a single solitary mistake made by someone who thought he was helping. If there is a lesson to be learned, it has been learned. It has been a year from hell for him. This is one of the good guys you have before you.”