Cabbie feared he would be killed

Terrified driver fled after attack cased crash

A drink and drug-crazed taxi passenger who attacked a cabbie was jailed for three years.

The taxi driver suffered a broken rib after he lost control of his vehicle which hit a telegraph pole and rolled down an embankment .

Alfie McGurk, 27, from Denny, had stuck his fingers in Bannockburn driver Piotr Tadeuszewski’s mouth “like a fish hook” as the cabbie was driving him home to the Carron Valley after a night out in Stirling.

Mr Tadeuszewski said he thought McGurk wanted to kill him during the incident on July 3.

Prosecutor Cheryl Clark said that during the journey Mr Tadeuszewski, 59, had to wake McGurk up to ask where he wanted to go and noticed that his passenger seemed drunk and disoriented.

On a country road near Carron Bridge, McGurk “started to become agitated about losing £20” and demanded Mr Tadeuszewski drive him straight to Denny police station.

Miss Clark said: “Mr Tadeuszewski turned the taxi to head for Denny. At that stage the accused moved seats to sit behind Mr Tadeuszewski and the taxi driver asked him why he had done this.

“There was no response but immediately the accused grabbed him from behind using both his arms.

“He was squeezing him across the top of his chest and neck and he was struggling to breathe.

“He managed to shout at the accused, who then stuck his fingers into his mouth like a fish hook and pulled at his face. The taxi driver lost control and struck a telegraph pole before rolling down an embankment.”

Miss Clark continued: “Once the vehicle stopped rolling, Mr Tadeuszewski was able to exit it and ran towards a guest house they had just passed.

“Looking behind him, he could see the accused was about 15 metres away from him. It’s fair to say he was extremely frightened by this stage.”

Falkirk Sheriff Court was told that it was now nearly 4am, and the proprietor of the guest house was woken by Mr Tadeuszewski, who got in through a fire exit.

Miss Clark said: “Holding the door shut and looking terrified, he was shouting ‘He’s trying to kill me. I can see him outside. He strangled me’.”

The guest house owner called police, who also received a call from Bentend Farm, on Tak Ma Doon Road, reporting someone in an outbuilding.

They went straight there and found McGurk. He was handcuffed and became abusive.

Reinforcements including a dog handler were brought. The accused abused one officer before spitting in the face of two officers.

Mr Tadeuszewski had facial swelling, a possible fracture to his left sinus, tenderness to his back, bruising to his forehead, a fractured rib, and a possible traumatic lung contusion. McGurkpleaded guilty to assaulting Mr Tadeuszewski to his severe injury, robbing him of his driver’s log, racially-aggravated threatening behaviour and police assault.

Harry Couchlin, defending, said McGurk had “fallen into using drink and drugs” after the end of a relationship.

Mr Couchlin said: “He has no recollection whatsoever of these events.

“He is appalled at what he has done.”

Imposing the jail term, Sheriff John Mundy said: “This was a very serious matter.”

He’s trying to kill me. I can see him outside. He strangled me.