Cab Driver Assaulted in Uijongbu
UPDATE #2: The Stars and Stripes now has an English language report out that clarifies what happened. It was just one soldier involved in the incident and this soldier was in fact and MP and is a 8th Army soldier stationed in Yongsan. The 2ID bashing can stop now.
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UPDATE #1: Via the Marmot’s Hole he provides this Korean news link with video of the latest taxi cab related incident. From what I’m able to translate from the Korean news article, Korean speakers feel free to correct me if I’m wrong, but the apprehended soldier is actually an 8th Army soldier from Yongsan that was up in Dongducheon drinking. Him and his buddy decided to take a cab to Uijongbu and took one of the expensive taxis. When they got to Uijongbu they did not have enough money to pay the 48,000 won fare. So they then decided to beat up the cab driver and steal his cab. They had 30 policemen searching for them in Uijongbu when they ditched the cab at an apartment complex and made their way on post.
The police have security camera video of the soldier in an apartment stairwell along with security camera video of the taxi arriving at the apartment complex to go along with the cell phone he left in the cab. To make matters even more interesting is that the soldier in question is an MP!
I have to ask this question again: Do MPs make the stupidest criminals?
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Original Post: There hasn’t been a taxi cab related incident in a while so I guess one was due:
U.S. and South Korean officials are jointly investigating an off-base taxi driver’s claims that two white men assaulted him and stole his taxi late Monday night in Uijeongbu city.
“Based on their looks, including their short haircuts and so on, we assume they are U.S. soldiers,†a Uijeongbu officer told Stars and Stripes on Tuesday.
The police officer said the men might have made the investigation a bit easier than normal: Police found a cell phone they believe one of the men left in the taxi after fleeing the scene. Police were working to track the cell phone’s owner Tuesday.
Stupid criminals are always the easiest to catch.
If this assault is true and the perpetrators are caught, they will face a minimum three years in jail according to the new taxi cab law passed last December. Also just to point out that Uijongbu isn’t the only place that taxi cab related incidents happen, the last taxi cab related incident happened in Yongsan and that episode was particularly violent compared to this one.
[…] taxi after fleeing the scene. Police were working to track the cell phone’s owner Tuesday. http://rokdrop.com/2007/03/28/cab-driver-assaulted-in-uijongbu/ Filed under Blog by […]
I'm surprised the cab driver isn't being blamed here for cheating on the innocent GIs who understandably punched him out for trying to cheat them, like you usually do.
I can not even believe this one, what in the heck was he thinking? Once again, as a former MP, He knew better. The Provost Marshall is going to unleash hell on this kid. He was given the new law briefings on the Taxi Drivers and then he goes and does this? I wonder will the Korean Govt. will let the US Military drop the "Hammer" and give him allot of time in jail?
Tom,
You constantly distort everything I say. Uijongbu and Dongducheon cab drivers regularly cheat GIs on fares. I would like you to find someone from Uijongbu and Dongducheon who says this isn't true. However, just because you get cheated doesn't give you the right to assault them. Here are my two most popular prior posts on taxi cab related incidents. Where in these posts do I blame cab drivers and excuse GI actions?:
http://rokdrop.com/2005/07/19/what-really-happene…
http://rokdrop.com/2005/07/17/what-is-really-happ…
Mike,
I hope these two guys do get prosecuted under the new taxi law and get at least the minimum three year sentence because especially as an MP this guy knew better and did it anyway.
I understand the Taxis at Humphreys are under great pressure from their MP passengers to drive fast as possible and often the MP will slap the driver in the back of the head if he does not listen
The drivers are afraid to lodge a complaint because first the complaint goes to the Taxi company and the company does not wish to cause ripples with its payer (AFFES) so the company would rather fire the driver than deal with the problem
GI, maybe those cab drivers cheat as a payback for the utter contempt and verbal abuses doled out by American soldier passengers that they must face everyday to make a few buck. But of course, that should not give the cabbies the right to cheat the fairs.
I myself have been frustrated by a Uijongbu area Taxi. I tried getting one at the train station and each one wanted a flat rate instead of the meter….I finally found one who would use his meter and the fare was far less than the flat rate
I told these other taxi dude that I was not surprised of the violence against taxi drivers here and their turn would be soon;;;;and so I believe its one of these taxis involved
Ah-ha…
Here is a suggestion for USFK "leadership" which will stop a lot of the taxi violence… and, actually take care of the soldiers they are "leading".
Ready for it?
Why doesn't "leadership" publicly post the correct metered taxi fares on popular routes? They can make a nice chart showing what the maximum possible rush hour fare is… and what the minimum 5am no-cars-on-the-road fare is.
They could also collect complaints against rip-off taxis and put pressure on the local "community leaders" to insure they use the meters as legally required.
It seems like GI Joe's happy buzz starts wearing off on the way home… and it is slowly replaced by this creeping feeling that taxi ajushi is ramming it his buttocks with an overchared cap fare as the only lube…
…and then the violence comes out.
Political pressure works. If Dongducheon was given the threat of off-limits, the club owners would lean on the taxi drivers to quit screwing the GIs. Easy.
I saw this first-hand when Osan Air Base, under Forsyth and Dowling, told the local "business leaders" that the Songtan bar district would be placed off-limits if the Lt. Jason Davis scandal got bigger. All the bars he (and others in town patrol) were extorting money and sex from shut up. The trial focused on his curfew violations and other low-level scumbag behavior with no mention of his actions that required knowledge of senior leadership… and business went on as usual.
This kind of pressure can be used as a force for good, too… but only if leadership is interested in taking care of it's soldiers instead of lining it pockets.
J!
In this recent incident the soldier used a Seoul taxi which I have never had any problems with so I doubt this taxi did anything to provoke what happened. This soldier just seems like a scumbag and hopefully he gets hit with the new ROK taxi law.
Most soldiers know what the price of ride should cost but forget to tell the driver to start the meter. Usually if you get on them to start the meter they will start it. However, some of them even if they run the meter they will then demand more money once the ride is complete hoping the soldier will be dumb enough to give them the money.
I think I will do an expanded posting on what to do about the taxi cabs since it is an on going issue that I have vast experience dealling with.
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