By Hedy Khoo

THIS taxi ride cost him an arm and a leg. Mr Jason Tan, 29, a bank operations officer, claimed he was beaten up by a cab driver and ended up with a broken right arm and a bruised right leg.

The problem is, Mr Tan cannot remember the cab's details.

He said the incident happened last Saturday along Serangoon Avenue 1, near Serangoon Terrace, at 2.25am.

Said Mr Tan: "He might have mistaken me for a fare cheat, but that still does not justify hitting me with a metal rod."

Mr Tan said he had flagged the cab at Furama Riverfront Hotel at Havelock Road after attending a friend's wedding dinner.

MrTan said he had been drinking wine that evening and was feeling high, but claimed he was not drunk. He claimed he had even helped check the bill before the groom made the payment for the wedding dinner.

Two friends had accompanied him to the hotel's entrance and saw him take a cab before returning to their hotel room. He told the taxi driver to head for Serangoon Avenue 1.

Mr Tan claims he did not speak further to the taxi driver except to ask him to turn into Serangoon Terrace when they reached Serangoon Avenue 1, but the cabby refused.

He claimed the taxi driver told him "no" in a fierce tone. "I sensed that something was not right and I immediately asked him to stop the cab and quickly got out," said Mr Tan.

Mr Tan is 1.62m tall and weighs about 58kg.

He claimed: "It's not that I did not want to pay my cab fare. I got out of the cab first because I thought it was safer to be out in the open."

INJURIES: Mr Tan showing how he blocked the cabby's blows with his arm.

Charged

Mr Tan claimed he was waiting to pay his fare, but he saw the cabby suddenly get out with a metal rod. "He charged at me, so I started to run into Serangoon Terrace in the direction of my home," said Mr Tan. He said the metal rod was about half an arm's length.

He claimed the cab driver ran after him for about 100m and despite his pleas, the driver tried to hit him on the head with the rod.

Mr Tan said he held up his arms to block the blows. "He used the rod to hit my arm two or three times. I fell down and he hit my leg," claimed Mr Tan.

The attack lasted about two minutes. Mr Tan said the cabby then ran back to his taxi and drove away.

Mr Tan immediately called the police. He also phoned his brother.

He was later taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital by ambulance.

Mr Tan claims the attack left him with a fractured arm and a bruised leg.

The alleged incident left Mr Tan with a fractured right arm and a big bruise on his right knee.

He is currently on medical leave for a week and has to visit the doctor again next week.

The police said they are looking into the matter.

When contacted, a Furama Riverfront Hotel spokesman said it would assist in any police investigations if needed.

Mr Tan claims the cabby is of medium-build and was wearing a white shirt and dark-coloured pants. He claims he doesn't remember anything about the taxi except that it had a manual gearbox.

"I am still in shock. I didn't offend the taxi driver. There was no reason for him to attack me. I was prepared to pay him the cab fare, but he never even demanded it from me," claimed Mr Tan.

hedykhoo@sph.com.sg

This article was first published in The New Paper.