Man who 'viciously assaulted and robbed taxi driver' in Lancashire jailed

The victim - a man in his 40s - arrived in Lloyd Street to collect a fare at around 11.30pm in March 2018.

He was then attacked by four men, including 23-year-old defendant Nathan Scott, who kicked and punched him in the face and body.

The four people, including Scott, then attempted to steal the taxi after the victim crawled out of the vehicle.

The group eventually fled the scene with the victim's PDA (personal digital assistant) and mobile phone which contained photos of the victim's family.

Neither device has ever been recovered.

Following a number of enquiries Scott was arrested at a property in Shawforth, Rochdale, in September 2018.

Following a trial at Burnley Crown Court, Scott of Mosley Street, Manchester, was jailed for four-and-a-half years after being found guilty of conspiracy to commit robbery.

DC Rick Whalley, of East CID, said: “This was a cowardly attack on a man just trying to do his job. The victim in the case was callously lured to Whitworth so he could be beaten and robbed.

"Thankfully his injuries were not as serious as they might have been. However, he did lose irreplaceable family photographs as a result of this crime.

"Scott showed no remorse throughout this case and even forced the victim to give evidence by denying his guilt.

"Lancashire Police will not tolerate this kind of offending and will do everything within our power to bring the perpetrators to justice."

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