Police warn cabbies about robbers

Keith Paul

Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2001 | 11:27 a.m.

Metro Police are warning all taxicab drivers to be on the lookout for robbers after 14 holdups of drivers in the past three weeks -- including two on Tuesday.

Taxicab driver robberies are no surprise in the Las Vegas Valley, but the recent string is far more than normally occurs. Detectives believe two robbers -- acting separately -- have pulled off five capers each, Lt. John Alamshaw of Metro's robbery unit said.

"It is very hard for the drivers to know if someone is going to rob them when they pick up a fare," Alamshaw said. "It's not like (the robbers) are wearing ski masks when the (taxi) drivers pick them up."

In most of the robberies, the driver picked up a passenger at a Strip or downtown hotel-casino or at McCarran International Airport. At some point during the trip the robber pulled a weapon, demanded money and once getting the cash fled the stopped cab.

One of the robbers has used a knife to threaten the driver and has always been driven to the west side of Las Vegas. He is suspected in a robbery Tuesday that started when he was picked up at the airport about 8 a.m. and taken to the area of D Street and Leonard Avenue.

The other robbery Tuesday appeared to be the work of the other robber suspected in a string of holdups. He caught a cab at the Rio hotel-casino and later robbed the driver at gunpoint, Alamshaw said.

The other four recent cab driver robberies are believed to have been done by different suspects, police said.

The state Taxicab Authority has warned all the cab companies about the recent holdups and has sent the descriptions of the robbers to be posted in the garages, said Natalie Infurno, an investigator for the Taxicab Authority, a state regulatory agency.

"We also warn them every year during (a mandatory) four-hour safety class about the dangers and how to protect themselves," she said.

Taxi drivers can refuse service if they feel threatened, Infurno said.

"If they refuse to pick someone up, they better be able to articulate why," she said. The Taxicab Authority in addition to handling the licencing of cabbies also doles out punishment for misconduct.

Infurno said she has been encouraging drivers to make sure they get a good look at their customers in case the fare turns out to be a robber.

Anyone with information in the taxicab robberies is asked to call Metro's robbery unit at 229-3591 or Secret Witness at 385-5555.