Nervous zTrip cabbie faces gun charges

A taxi driver who thought he was going to be robbed ended up being charged by police after he allegedly held passenger at gunpoint, according to police.

Duquesne police said Michael Brown, 59, a zTrip driver, picked up a 22-yearold man in Larimer on Tuesday morning to give him a ride to McKeesport.

During the trip, Mr. Brown became worried he was being set up for a robbery, so he pulled a handgun and threatened the passenger, police said.

Mr. Brown then pulled over at a construction site on Center Street in Duquesne. He told the passenger to get out of the cab and lie on the ground to wait for police.

When officers arrived, they found Mr. Brown holding the passenger at gunpoint. He explained that he thought he was being set up for a robbery because his passenger was exchanging text messages with someone, police said.

Officers checked the passenger’s text messages and said they didn’t find anything that appeared to be a robbery plan.

If Mr. Brown felt threatened, police said, he could have hit the silent panic button in the cab, called 911 or stopped and run away.

Police charged Mr. Brown with making terroristic threats, unlawful restraint and simple assault.

Jamie Campolongo, CEO of Pittsburgh Transportation Group and zTrip, said in a statement that the company was cooperating with authorities and that Mr. Brown had been suspended pending the outcome of the investigation.

“At no time are lease drivers authorized to take the law into their own hands,” he said. “The continued safety of our passengers and lease drivers is of our utmost concern.”

Andrew Goldstein: agoldstein@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1352.