Edinburgh private hire driver stopped by police after taxi driver mistakes handheld VACUUM CLEANER for something more sinister

A private hire vehicle (PHV) driver in Edinburgh was stopped by police after a black taxi driver reportedly mistook a handheld vacuum cleaner for something more serious.

Sebastian Jaskula, the PHV driver involved, shared details of the alleged incident online, expressing his frustration at the situation. According to him, four police cars were dispatched to the scene near the Hilton Hotel after the report was made.

Jaskula posted an image of the vacuum cleaner secured in a net storage compartment inside his vehicle. He wrote: “To the black cab who reported me to police this morning over this, go to hospital, get your brain checked out.”

Responding to other bewildered drivers on an Edinburgh taxi and PHV Facebook group he added: “Four police cars stopped me by the Hilton Hotel.”

The misunderstanding appears to have caused a significant police response, though it remains unclear what the taxi driver believed the object to be.