A 53-year-old man has this afternoon been arrested in the Erdington area on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence. The victim is being spoken to by officers and the investigation continues.
The video shared by Twitter user @AndrewNeill99 went viral has seen over 2,100 retweets. Many have thanked him for sharing the video and raising awareness of hate crimes, particularly of those faced by taxi drivers.
One person commented:”Don’t often retweet A Neill but to do so with passion here. Wata vile bugger that Brummie guy is.”
Another commented: This is so sad, it makes me embarrassed to be English. Bloody awful man, he needs locking up and throw away the key.”
One Muslim user said: “Imagine if it were the other way round Muslims would be getting crucified.”
West Midlands Police commented: “We’re aware of a video circulating online that shows a taxi driver being racially abused – we can confirm that we’re investigating.
“Officers have been in touch with the taxi driver this morning and have made an appointment to see him as soon as possible.
“We understand that experiencing a hate crime is extremely distressing and upsetting. We are proud to police our diverse communities and will take action against those who commit a hate crime.”
Anyone with information is urged to please contact West Midlands Police via Live Chat at http://west-midlands.police.uk 8am – midnight or call 101 anytime.
