There is an interesting story out of Edmonton, England where police refused to file charges against four women who falsely accused cab driver Soner Yasa of sexual assault. It is an all too familiar story where false rape and assault victims are often not charged as in the infamous case of the Duke Lacrosse team.
Yasa picked up the girls in a bar areas in April 2006. The ride went badly when they tried to smoke in the taxi — which is against the law. When Yasa told them that they could not light up, the women became irate and got out of the cab and refused to pay the fare. They then called on friends and bystanders, allegedly claiming that Yasa tried to assault them. Both the women and Yasa called the police. What the women did not know is that, after a prior robberty, Yasa had installed a video camera in the taxi which exonerated him.
When the women admitted that they had lied to the police, Yasa said he wanted to press charged but the police refused.
He is now understandably pursuing a lawsuit, seeking $240,000 in damages from the four women.
I fail to understand how the police can refuse to accept such a charge from a citizen, particularly when a videotape supports the account. Assuming that an assault charge was made, there is little deterrent to false allegations absent such a response. The most the police reportedly did was collect the $13 fare — which Yasa later returned on principle.
For the full story, click here.
But nooooo, women never lie about rape!!!
@ Helen
THANK YOU! The fact is, these situations occur far more often than most realize, so common that drivers in some cities have let it be know that they are avoiding picking up single women after dark to protect themselves from the threat of false accusations.
Protecting this type of woman is not making the world a safer place for women (or cab drivers), the repeated claim that ‘women don’t make false accusations’ is damaging to the falsely accused and needlessly endangering women.
It’s time for a little realism on these complex issues!
I just wanted to respond to anonymous up there. Regardless of the facts the other girls was accessories to fraud and an attack to destroy a human life. Having a person falsely accused of rape and imprisoned is just as bad as rape itself. It is no different than if they had kidnapped the man and kept him locked in a cage for 20 years. In the west the man is often considered guilty by default. I would also like to state that he is likely not looking for a free ride but simple revenge. He will never win the full $240,000, he is just making years of their life unpleasant, and taking his own time and money to do this.
These false accusations ruin lives, They ruin the life of the accused and their family. They also draw doubt upon the cries of all of the real victims out there. The “one” girl who made that accusation deserves years in prison while her accomplices deserve nearly as much for not telling the police and the gathered crowd the truth when the accusation was first made. I really do hope they enjoy their years of painful litigation, they have earned it.
There are so many pieces to this article that are untrue. It was one woman that made allegations, not all four woman in the car who made the allegations. One woman in the back decided to smoke which was an unwise decision she deserves to pay the $500 fine for smoking in a cab but that is all. The only woman who made any type of false accusation was the woman sitting in the front seat, what she did is unexcusable and she absolutely deserves to pay, but the other women were uninvolved in the accusations. The cab fare was also offered to the cab driver but he refused to take it, because he wanted to sue for a free meal ticket. Also, the bystanders were not “friends” of the women, they were unknown bystanders and had approached the cab after the woman in the front seat maliciously told them that she was malested, it was the same woman who called the police and made the false claims. You can’t criminally charge someone for being a witness, actions were also by 2 of the other women to stop the call to the police. So say what you please, but you don’t have all the facts.
‘Princess’ was right… this happened here in Edmonton, Alberta, CANADA… if anyone knows the outcome of the lawsuit please post a link
If it was in England the amount would have been reported in pounds.
Princess,
Edmonton, Greater London, UK
Link: http://maps.google.com/maps?q=edmonton,+england&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&ie=UTF8&split=0&gl=us&ei=HNYZSsyBMMOktgen5aH_DA&z=16&iwloc=A
I just say F&*^*^ em.
“He is now understandably pursuing a lawsuit, seeking $240,000 in damages from the four women.”
I hope that’s 240K @, 60K @ isn’t enough for the potential horroeshow they tried to visit on his life.
If the video was unavialable then the cabbie might have his life ruined. The women should have been criminally charged.
Oh what a ride this must have been, smokin down on bourbon street.
Now really why are we surprised?
Edmonton is in the Province of Alberta in CANADA.
Is that a 1965 Opel station wagon?