‘I’ll shoot you,’ man tells ChCh taxi driver

A Christchurch taxi driver who allegedly had a passenger point a gun at his head and threaten to shoot him has vowed to keep driving.

The driver, who the Herald has agreed not to name, says the man produced the firearm soon after he was picked up and said: “If you’re not stopping, I will shoot you.”

Near the end of his shift, the 29-year-old driver for Blue Star taxis was called out to a motel in Upper Riccarton about 7.30pm on Friday.

It was a dark area with no streetlights when a man and woman opened the rear doors of his Toyota Prius and got in.

There was confusion around just where they wanted to be taken.

The driver headed back down Riccarton Rd towards the city centre.

Just 500m into the journey, the driver says a long-barrelled gun was produced and held to his head.

He says he pushed the gun away with his hand and kept driving.

The man allegedly told him: “If you’re not stopping, I will shoot you.”

The driver managed to flee from the vehicle around the Church Corner area and ran off.

Two members of the public helped him and they phoned police, who arrived on the scene quickly.

The taxi was allegedly driven to Ashburton, about 85km away. Police tracked it down within an hour and arrested a man and a woman.

Daniel Joseph Patrick Leahy, 31, and Latia Opal-Rose Tipa-McQueen, 19, face charges including aggravated robbery and unlawful possession of a shotgun and ammunition.

They appeared in the Christchurch District Court on Saturday and were remanded in custody.

The driver told the Herald yesterday that he’s been shaken by the incident. However, he says he will return to work, but first has to wait until his taxi is repaired.

“I just feel lucky that I am safe.” Blue Star chairman Martin Miller said the industry is “shocked and appalled” by the incident.

“Having a gun pulled on you, the poor guy is pretty shaken up,” Miller said.

“We’re here to provide a service.