Beaten taxi driver urges more in-car security as gardaí hunt attackers

A taxi driver who was savagely beaten and robbed while on duty has called for government aid to improve in-car security for cabbies.

A bruised and battered grandfather of eight, John Forde, 59, from Cork, made the plea yesterday as gardaí continued to hunt for his two attackers.

“I thought it was over — I was going to be killed. They just kept on punching me,” John said.

Gardaí have conducted a forensic examination of his car and trawled through CCTV footage. A senior Garda spokesman said they have devoted considerable manpower to the investigation and are “confident” that those responsible will be tracked down.

Cork Taxi Council, which is supporting Mr Forde, appealed for anyone with information to contact gardaí.

The ABC Cabs driver was assaulted early on Friday after picking up two men in their 20s near the former Black Tie premises on St Patrick’s Street at around 4am.

One was wearing a black tracksuit, the other a grey tracksuit. One sat in the front; the other, who was thin and wearing a hoodie, sat in the back of his green 2011 Toyota Avensis.

They asked him to drive them to Spring Lane in Blackpool and paid a €10 fare in advance, but once they got there, they asked him to carry on towards Dublin Hill.

When they got to the Glen Heights area, the men asked him for money before launching a sustained and vicious assault.

The man in the back restrained Mr Forde while the man in the front began punching him in the head and face. They dragged him from the car and continued assaulting him, before they made off in his car. It was found crashed at Kinvara Close later.

Dazed and shocked, Mr Forde struggled on foot to a nearby Garda station before he was taken to hospital. “I was brought to Cork University Hospital by ambulance,” he said.

“My four teeth are the worst — they are not busted but they are very loose and it is very painful. So I need another x-ray on my jaw.

“But they could have stabbed me — they could have killed me. It could have been an awful lot worse.”

Mr Forde said he has to get back to work soon to meet bills. “I am very nervous. I will have to go back out again. But it will take me a while,” he said. “I have no idea how long I will be out of work but I will have to try and get back. Like everybody else, I have a mortgage to pay. I have bills to pay at home.”

96FM, which was flooded with offers of help for Mr Forde yesterday, will hold a benefit table quiz at St Vincent’s GAA club at 7.30pm on Thursday.

Cork Taxi Council spokesman Bobby Lynch said another taxi driver was attacked in Cork last week. He said drivers are increasingly nervous for their safety.