Jail for man who 'VICIOUSLY' assaulted and robbed a taxi driver in Whitworth

Image credit: Lancashire Police

A man who viciously assaulted and robbed a taxi driver in Whitworth has been jailed for four and a half years.

At around 11.30pm during one evening in March 2018, the victim, a man in his 40s, arrived to collect a fare in Lloyd Street.

After parking up, he was attacked by four people, including 23-year-old defendant Nathan Scott, who kicked and punched him to the face and body. One of the offenders then brandished a large knife.

The victim managed to escape by crawling out of the taxi.

The four people, including Scott, got into the taxi and attempted to steal it.

They eventually ran from the scene with the victim’s PDA (personal digital assistant) and mobile phone, which contained photographs of the victim’s family. Neither device has ever been recovered.

Following a number of enquiries Scott was arrested at a property in Shawforth, Rochdale, in September 2018.

Following a trial at Burnley Crown Court, Scott of Mosley Street, Manchester, was found guilty of conspiracy to commit robbery.

DC Rick Whalley, of East CID, said: “This was a cowardly attack on a man just trying to do his job. The victim in the case was callously lured to Whitworth so he could be beaten and robbed.

“Thankfully his injuries were not as serious as they might have been. However, he did lose irreplaceable family photographs as a result of this crime.

“Scott showed no remorse throughout this case and even forced the victim to give evidence by denying his guilt.

“Lancashire Police will not tolerate this kind of offending and will do everything within our power to bring the perpetrators to justice.”