They catch a "pirate taxi" red-handed in Lanzarote

Agents of the Local Police of Arrecife managed to identify and stop a "pirate taxi" when it was circulating in the early morning in a central area of the city. The action of the Local Police took place at 5:27 AM on July 15 and they observed nervousness in the driver, born in 1967 and resident in Arrecife.

The agents confirmed that, in the back of the vehicle, a Citroën C3, there were four people – three seated and one on their knees, as there were no more seats. In the front, in addition to the driver, there was another occupant.

The police officers ordered the occupants of the vehicle to get out, except for the driver, and they noticed an inconsistency between what the driver stated and what the other occupants said. While the driver said he was transporting friends – the police asked them to identify them by name, without success.

Immediately after, the local police officers asked the 'young passengers' how they knew the driver of the vehicle and they replied "that they were waiting for a taxi and that this driver approached them with his vehicle, and offered to take them all where they wanted and charged them the same or a little less than if they were in a taxi".

After the statement of these occupants, the agents reiterated to the driver if it was true, and he acknowledged that yes, it was true. The agents also asked if he had done this on other occasions, to which he replied yes.

The Local Police report states that other National Police officers were also present in the area to participate, jointly with the local agents, in another service.

The Local Police of Arrecife has as a directive, by the mayor of Arrecife, Yonathan de León – as directly responsible for the Local Police – to constantly monitor the regulations governing taxi activity in the municipality of Arrecife and public passenger transport services in the city.

The Arrecife City Council, with this report from the Local Police, is processing the imposition of the sanction determined by the responsible Administration for this act of intrusion in the public passenger transport sector.