Half a dozen taxi drivers operating in New York City stole thousands of dollars from passengers by overcharging tolls, city officials announced Monday.
The Investigations Department said six taxi drivers pleaded guilty Friday to felony charges of defrauding about 2,000 passengers between 2015 and 2018. All six defendants were ordered to participate in a community diversion and sentencing program designed to reduce the imprisonment.
Monday’s announcement identified the six drivers, who were charged with overcharging that group of passengers for a combined total of more than $ 11,500.
“DOI’s investigation included analysis of driver information, GPS data, and TLC trip data, and also included identification of suspicious toll charges, review of maps developed from GPS records of the taxis driven by the accused drivers, the creation of maps for each suspicious trip and the examination of each to see if the appropriate toll amount was collected, “according to the press release.
Authorities said drivers were accused of overcharging their toll rates that did not take into account an E-ZPass discount, or charging passengers with tolls when neither should have.
The drivers hail from Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island, and Long Island, and are between the ages of 31 and 62. A seventh driver is due to appear in court next month.
“The City’s taxi industry has suffered a devastating economic blow in recent years and, as a result, many drivers have directly experienced a serious impact. While we have compassion for all those who have been affected, DOI acted to stop fraud by this group of drivers and protect taxi passengers from being victims, “DOI Acting Commissioner Daniel Cort said in the announcement. of Monday.
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