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| Statistics show their are many commonalities in sexual assaults that occur in taxi cabs. (123RF) |
After a string of alleged sexual assaults in taxis, Haligonians may be thinking twice before hopping in a cab.
In an effort to ease people’s minds, Halifax Regional Police have looked at previous incidents and compiled a list of safety tips.
“The women who have been sexually assaulted have done absolutely nothing wrong and have every right to believe it’s safe to get into a taxi,” said Halifax Regional Police in a news release on Monday. “It’s the perpetrators who are purposely targeting young women accessing their taxis.”
Since 2012, police say there have been 12 sexual assaults in HRM. Nearly half of those have been committed this year with a total of five assaults to date.
Police have laid charges in five of the 12 cases. Three are closed after being unable to identify a suspect, one was closed at the request of the victim and the remaining three are under investigation.
There are many commonalities among these dozen incidents, beginning with the profiles of the offenders and victims.
The offenders are often described as men with dark hair, between the ages of 30 to 50, with many of them speaking with an accent.
Police say they are mostly targeting women, between the ages of 19 to 25, who are travelling in the front seat.
When committing the assault the offenders either had a lone female passenger in the taxi or waited until the woman was the only passenger left.
Police say that in many of the incidents the offenders insist on no payment for the drive, either before or after committing the assault, and try to flatter or flirt with the victim.
The offender will often sexually touch the woman or forcibly kiss her.
These incidents often take place between 8:30 p.m. to 4:30 a.m., on weekends and most often in the spring and summer months.
Police recommend you:
-call a taxi instead of hailing one. This ensures there’s a record of the request, including the name of the driver dispatched.
-take note of the company’s name and roof light number.
-look at and remember the driver’s photo ID, which legally needs to be clearly visible inside the taxi.
-sit in the back seat if travelling alone and on the right-hand side as it’s the farthest from the driver and nearest to the curb should you need to get out quickly.
-have your phone handy in case you need to call 9-1-1.
As the investigations continue, police have been working closely with taxi and limousine services.
They have also been speaking with bar staff in the downtown core in an effort to try and identify the offenders.
Police are asking anyone with information to contact 902-490-5016 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
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