A person who claimed to be a policeman attached to Cinnamon Gardens Police station had forcibly got into a taxi which was on a private hire with a Journalist on Saturday night and got down without paying his fare.

The man claimed to be a cop who was in his police uniform suddenly got into the taxi near Kirulapone Junction and asked the driver to drop him near the Kohuwala Police Station.

However, when nearing the Kohuwala Police Station the man who claimed himself a cop asked the driver to travel further and drop him at Divulapitiya, Boralesgamuwa.

It was at that time the Journalist who was travelling in the taxi and the driver protested and told the man that they would call the police and then the man told them he was a policeman attached to Cinnamon Gardens Police.

However, the man got down at Divulapitiya, Boralesgamuwa without paying a single amount to the driver and when the journalist asked to pay the fare to the driver, the man said that “the hire is his” which means the private taxi driver has given free ride to the man who claimed to be a policeman.

After the incident, the driver who wished to stay anonymous told the Journalist that this was not the first time, but it had happened several times where the Policemen use their uniform to get free hires.

“These people attached to the police stations are taking free rides in our taxis using their Police uniform. If we don’t give them a free hire they are taking us to the Police Station and keeping us in there for hours,” the driver said.

He said they would urge the law enforcement authorities to take necessary action against these kinds of matters without considering them as minor issues. (YOSHITHA PERERA)