'I have never felt scared driving my cab before'

A TAXI driver was left choking on his own blood after a violent passenger beat him up in Tonbridge.

Edward Bingle, 64, of Highview, Vigo, was beaten up after driving a customer home from the Vigo Inn, Gravesend Road, Fairseat.

Mr Bingle claims his passenger punched him repeatedly in the face and left him unconscious.

"He said he'd had more to drink than usual but he was perfectly friendly," the driver explained.

"Then during the journey his personality changed completely. He started calling me fat, swearing and shouting at me to drive faster.

"I kept going and tried to calm him down but he just got more and more angry."

When the cab arrived in Higham Lane, Tonbridge, the man refused to pay and got out. Mr Bingle said: "He was shouting through the open window so I picked up my phone hoping he would think I was calling the police.

"He grabbed it and threw it into a tree, shouting 'you don't know who you are messing with'.

"Then he reached into the cab and started hitting me.

"It all happened so fast and hurt so much I can hardly remember it. When I came round I was choking on blood and it was all over my shirt and the side of the car."

Mr Bingle radioed the Borough Green Taxi Service office to report the incident but was too scared to stay at the scene so drove back.

Controller Donna Derouel called the police and an ambulance. She said: "I talked to him the whole way.

"His glasses were smashed so he couldn't see properly and he was really shaken.

"When he arrived he looked like he had gone ten rounds with Mike Tyson. He had blood coming out of his nose and mouth – I was scared he'd have a heart attack."

Mr Bingle was taken by ambulance to Maidstone Hospital with a loose tooth, a broken nose, cut lip and two black eyes, and was kept in overnight.

He said: "My face is still really swollen so I have to have an x-ray next week to see if a bone in my cheek is chipped."

Mr Bingle is also suffering psychological effects from the October 8 attack.

He explained: "I have never felt scared driving my cab before but I feel so vulnerable now – it was so unexpected and violent."

Rory Niblock, investigating police officer, said: "Taxi drivers can be very vulnerable and CCTV is a great way to deter criminals while making drivers and law-abiding passengers feel safer.

"In this particular case, the investigation is very much ongoing and we are continuing to follow up lines of enquiry."