Woman sentenced for assaulting Huddersfield taxi driver

Categories: Latest News
Thursday March 31 2016
The Huddersfield Examiner reports on the sentencing of a young woman who verbally abused and physically assaulted an Asian taxi driver after a night out leaving him too afraid to return to work.
Haley Spink, 25, admitted to charges of racially-aggravated assault, causing a danger to road users and possession of cannabis at Kirklees magistrates court in connection with the incident on 13 September 2015.
The court heard Spink got into the passenger seat of Ilyas Khan’s taxi in Huddersfield town centre at 11pm asking to be driven to an address in Brackenhall.
When Khan arrived at the destination and asked for the £4 fare, Ms Spink said “What money?”
She then referred to a taxi firm called Timmy’s saying they would sort it out. When Mr Khan explained that he did not work for Timmy’s and that Ms Spink should pay her fare, she turned and said: “I ain’t white, I’m n*****” before throwing her purse at him.
Mr Khan picked up the purse and the £1.50 which fell out of it telling Ms Spink “Look you have money.”
But Ms Spink punched Mr Khan in the mouth and, when he threw her purse back at her, grabbed at him and scratched his face.
Prosecutor Vanessa Jones said: “He was really frightened and started to drive up the road. Spink grabbed hold of the steering wheel and he hit the kerb several times. She then shouted to him “P***”, he sounded the horn for assistance and she kicked out at him.”
Passers-by who witnessed the incident came to Mr Khan’s assistance and called the police.
Mr Khan was treated at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary for injuries including scratching around his eye, bite marks and further scratches to his neck and face.
In a victim impact statement read out in court, Mr Khan said he had been unable to work for two to three months since the incident because he had trouble seeing clearly due to the injury to his eye.
Kirklees magistrates court handed Spink a 20-week jail term suspended for 18 months.
She was ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work and pay Mr Khan £200 compensation.