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Fear is always a passenger

Most cabbies have stories about being robbed by a customer.

By MELANIE AVE
Published June 7, 2007

Cabdriver David Beyer remembers the feel of a gun against his head.

The young man had seemed quite nice as they chatted about the Devil Rays. But at the end of the ride, the weapon seemed to come out of nowhere.

"It was metal. It was cold. It was heavy," Beyer recalls of the holdup less than two months ago when he picked up the man from a public housing building near Tropicana Field about 4:30 a.m.

"He said, 'Put your hands up!' I put them up."

Beyer, 52, handed over $35 and sped away with the door still open.

It was his first holdup in a 35-year cab career. He didn't even bother to call police because he wanted to keep working.

Many cabdrivers who have been in the business for a while can tell stories about being robbed or attacked by customers.

Three high-profile incidents in St. Petersburg and Hillsborough County in the last month underscore the danger that drivers live with every day as they pick up strangers and take them all over the Tampa Bay area.

Cabdriver Dwayne Eagan, 37, a St. Petersburg father with cancer, was knifed in the face and neck and robbed Tuesday by two men who now face attempted murder charges.

In a separate incident last Wednesday in eastern Hillsborough County, John Agan, 43, was robbed, beaten and stuffed in his cab's trunk. His attackers have not been caught.

Both Eagan and Agan said they had been robbed before.

On May 27, Kurt Bryant, 35, owner of Bryant Luxury Transportation limousine service in St. Petersburg, was killed as he helped a woman out of the car. An 18-year-old man was arrested in connection with the case and faces a first-degree murder charge.

Agan finds the ease with which people rob cabdrivers sad.

"It's today's society," Agan said. "They think, 'We don't have to work. We just have to rob a cabdriver.'"

Risk 60 times as great

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health says taxi drivers are 60 times as likely as other workers to be killed on the job. They also are among those with the highest rate of assault -- exceeded only by police and security guards.

Some local drivers and cab companies believe a greater police presence would cut down on the violence against drivers, while others want local governments to require surveillance cameras and safety shields between the drivers and passengers.

More police urged

Joe Rosa, president of Independent Taxi, believes more police walking the streets would keep drivers safe.

"These guys are trying to make a living and they end up dead or maimed," said Rosa, who has had five of his drivers, including Eagan, robbed in the last year.

"The police presence is not here. It's not where it should be."

St. Petersburg police Sgt. Al White said he doesn't believe the two recent attacks in the city are a part of a growing trend of violence against drivers.

But after a problem arose about six months ago, police alerted cab companies, White said.

"We advised them of some safety tips," he said. "We told them to get a callback number, to be very careful when picking up on street corners."

Cabdrivers are often at risk because they work alone, deal in cash and drive at night in high-crime areas.

They are prime targets for drug addicts needing quick cash.

"You've got a lot of people with crack cocaine habits," said Willie Mims, 64, treasurer of the Blue Star Cab Co. in Pinellas County. "They can get $2 and buy a piece of crack."

The recent attacks on cabdrivers disturb Jerry McIntyre, assistant general manager of Bats Taxi in Pinellas County, but he doesn't see them as unusual.

"I think drivers have always been targeted," he said. "It's unfortunate."

Some companies have turned to Global Positioning Systems to keep track of their cars at all times. They warn drivers about picking people up on the street who have not called for a car, or for those who fail to give exact addresses.

They also have codes drivers can use to alert dispatchers of potentially dangerous customers or situations.

But McIntyre said cab companies will not install shields or cameras unless they are required by local governments.

"It's very expensive," he said.

City of St. Petersburg collections manager Tammy Jerome said her department has not been approached about changing the taxi cab ordinance to require shields or surveillance. But she said the companies could install them on their own.

Using street smarts

On the street, drivers are left to their street smarts to keep safe and are often told to drive away if they sense danger.

In Mesfin Araya's 14 years of driving a cab in Tampa, he has stayed safe by listening to his gut.

"You've got to take your own judgments for who you're going to pick up," the 41-year-old cabdriver said Wednesday.

He tries to stick to the customers who call from private addresses, believing that people who call from pay phones at gas stations might have something to hide.

Recently, he responded to a call from a South Tampa gas station. The two men looked suspicious, he said. He locked his door.

He asked where they wanted to go. They gave different answers and he drove away without them.

"Your body can tell you," Araya said. "You can feel it."

Wanting to quit

For some drivers, the danger factor is too much, and they end up quitting.

Agan, who has been a cabbie off and on for more than 18 years, hasn't driven for a week. He hopes he never has to again.

But with his car repossessed and his electricity bill due, his days of driving a cab may not be over for good.

"I need the money fast," Agan said. "I may not have a choice."

Times researcher Angie Drobnic Holan contributed to this report. Melanie Ave can be reached at 727 893-8813 or mave@sptimes.com.

Three drivers who recently were attacked
Three incidents in the past month underscore the danger drivers live with every day.

• Dwayne Eagan, 37, of St. Petersburg, was knifed in the face and neck and robbed Tuesday by two men who now face attempted-murder charges.
• John Agan, 43, was robbed, beaten and stuffed in his cab's trunk Iast Wednesday in eastern Hillsborough County. His attackers have not been caught.
• Kurt Bryant, 35, owner of a limousine service in St. Petersburg, was killed on May 27. A man was arrested and faces a first-degree murder charge.

Fund will aid knifed driver
Dozens of people have stepped forward wanting to donate money to St. Petersburg cabdriver Dwayne Eagan, 37, a father of one who has cancer and was knifed and robbed Tuesday. Two suspects were arrested. In response, his company, the Independent Taxi Service, is acting as a collection site for those wanting to contribute money to Eagan and his family. Donations can be dropped off at the company's dispatch office, 4121 Fifth Ave. N in St. Petersburg. Checks and money orders payable to Dwayne Eagan can be mailed to the Dwayne Eagan Fund, 5656 66th Street N, St. Petersburg, FL 33709. For questions, please call (727) 327-3444.

Fast Facts: Safety tips for taxi drivers
Tampa cabdriver Tim Fasano posted these safety tips on his taxi blog, www.timfasano.typepad.com/:

1. Get a clear and precise destination. Do not put the cab into drive until you know exactly where they are going.
2. Get a deposit. If you think the ride is shaky ... get money up front. NO DOUGH, NO GO.
3. Leave your radio on.
4. NEVER PICK UP FLAGGERS! 93% of all cab robberies are from flaggers.
5. Let dispatch know where you picked up and where you are going. That alone could scare off a robber.

[Last modified June 7, 2007, 00:33:15]