Cab driver assaulted Queens-bound passenger

From the NY Post:

A veteran taxi driver had his license revoked after a midtown surveillance camera caught him yanking a passenger out of his cab and tossing him into the middle of the street – all because he didn’t want to drive to Queens.

"Even without corroborating witness testimony, the video is most compelling evidence," wrote administrative law judge Tynia Richard in recommending that Sidikiba Diallo, a 20-year cabbie, be stripped of his hack permit.

According to public records, Diallo's problems began at 3 a.m. on April 8, when he stopped at the Ichi Umi restaurant and bar on East 32d Street off Fifth Avenue and picked up Glenn Yonemitsu, who had been drinking with friends.

Yonemitsu asked to be taken to 41st Street and 43rd Avenue in Queens.

Diallo charged that his passenger was intoxicated and refused to take him.

For several minutes, the two argued.

Some of the facts in the case are in dispute, but two cameras mounted outside the restaurant captured the moment when Diallo physically ejected Yonemitsu from the passenger compartment.

From NBC 4:

Diallo had previous run-ins with taxi regulations: The TLC said he once locked a passenger in the back of his cab. Another time, he supposedly pushed an inspector while getting a ticket.

Diallo was not at home and could not be reached for comment.

The TLC says cabbies can refuse a ride if a customer seems intoxicated. But they cannot refuse a ride based on destination, and they are not allowed to touch a passenger.