Taxi Driver Helping People Flee London Terror Attack Whacked With Fine

By James Burke
December 28, 2017 Last Updated: December 28, 2017
A London taxi travels past the Houses of Parliament. A taxi driver who helped people flee the London Bridge terror attack on June 3 has now been hit with a £270 bill (US $363) for jumping a red light as they fled the scene. (Daniel Leal-Olivas/AFP/Getty Images)

A taxi driver who helped people escape from the London Bridge terror attack has now lost points off his license and will need to pay a fine for jumping a red light as he fled the scene.

Black cab driver Ryan Barney told the Metro that he was unimpressed at about having to pay a £270 (US $363) fine for ignoring the red light as he helped his passengers get away from the attack area on June 3.

“I pleaded guilty and took the three points as I had just about jumped the light as they were changing, but explained my actions in the mitigation,” Barney, 31, told the Metro.

“I was just doing it to get as many people away as possible. No one knew what was going on and I just wanted to help people get away from the attackers,” he said.

The attack began when Islamic terrorists drove a white van through pedestrians on London Bridge. Then, using knives, they attacked anyone that could get a hold of in the nearby Borough Market area, killing eight people and injuring 48. The three attackers, wearing fake suicide vests, were eventually shot and killed by police.

“I saw that after the Manchester attacks cab drivers were turning off their meters and just doing all they could to help, so I thought that I would try and do my bit,” said Barney.

The Manchester terrorist attack killed 23 people at a pop concert which occurred several weeks earlier.

The traffic light that he jumped was less than two kilometers from where the attacks occurred.

Police officers near the scene of the London Bridge attack in central London on June 3, 2017. (Daniel Sorabji/AFP/Getty Images)

“At the time there were lots of differing reports, initially they thought the Vauxhall stabbing was terrorism as well and that many incidents seemed to be happening all over London,” said Barney.

“They were saying the London Bridge incident was different to Borough Market, there was a lot of chaos and confusion,” said the father of two.

“Police were saying ‘run, hide and tell.’ All the messages seemed to be getting crossed,” he said.

The light that he jumped was at a crossroad, Barney said, adding it wasn’t particularly dangerous. “No one was about at that time and the lights were only just changing as I went through,” he said.

“I pleaded guilty, I wasn’t trying to get away with it, but they didn’t take the situation into account and just acted by the book.

“They even charged me court costs. I’ve got a speeding fine before and that’s understandable, but this was a pretty unique situation.”

From NTD.TV