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Would-Be Kidnapper Cabbie Nabbed

Alysha Sideman in New York

When a New York cabbie who allegedly tried to kidnap one woman passenger early in October was not immeiately nabbed, many New Yorkers wanted to know why.

Akhtar Bajwa was arrested on Thursday in his taxi cab after a police search that lasted several weeks. Police want him for two alleged crimes -- both involving women, detective Madeline Galindo said.

In October he drove a 30-year-old woman passenger far away from her destination. The woman screamed for him to stop but he ignored her, according to her complaint. When the cab got stuck in traffic, the woman jumped out, called the police and lodged a complaint.

A few days later, he kidnapped another woman passenger, stopped the cab in a lonely spot, and tried to tie her hands with a scarf.

But she managed to fight off the 45-year-old Bajwa and escape. The woman managed to note down the license plate number of the cab and gave a good description of Bajwa, according to the police.

"If these charges are true, this man is giving us all a bad name," said cabbie Bobby Singh. "They (the authorities) say we do not pick up passengers. This man does not want his passengers to go away."

Bajwa, who has been driving a cab for nearly five years without getting into trouble, was charged with second-degree kidnapping and second-degree attempted kidnapping. He could be asked to see a psychiatrist.

If found guilty, Bajwa could face a two-year imprisonment, and his license could be revoked permanently; it was suspended on November 18.

New York cabbies -- nearly half of whom are from the Indian subcontinent -- have been constantly under fire for the last 10 days, following a formal complaint by Hollywood star Danny Glover that he was passed by many cabs because he is an African American. Nearly 200 cops are assigned to sting operations against cabbies from time to time, imposing stiff fines and even taking away cabs.

Many cabbies say that African Americans, who complain of being refused rides, simply do not want to acknowledge that the crime rate is so high in some parts of the city that even they may not want to be there in broad daylight.

Meanwhile, Bajwa is shopping for a good lawyer.

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