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Cabbie Takes iPod for Fare
By
Jen Carlson
Published Jan 17, 2009
Modified Jan 17, 2009
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By
Jen Carlson
Published Jan 17, 2009
Modified Jan 17, 2009
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Ever since cabs introduced credit card machines it's been nothing but trouble. The latest horror story has an absurd spin, however. Allegedly a 20-year-old girl was visiting the Big Apple when a cabbie stole her iPod. The story goes like this, as told by the girl's mother:
After the driver took her to JFK airport to catch her flight home, she tried to pay using her credit card. She had been using her credit card to pay for all her taxi cab rides. This time the card was not approved. She knew that she had enough money on the card to pay for the ride, so she called up the bank to find out what was wrong. They agreed that she had enough to pay for it but the driver’s machine used for the credit cards was not working. All the numbers were not going over either due to an equipment malfunction or a bad signal near the airport.
The driver got mad and called the Port Authority. When they got involved, they told her that if she couldn’t pay, then they would have to “book” her. They told her that she would have to give him something and she was forced to give the driver her $140 iPod to pay for a $50 cab ride.
While it has the sound of an urban legend, there might just be a part of the story that's missing. Like the part where the daughter traded her iPod for coke at Marquee. [via NewYorkology]
Tagged
cab
fare
ipod
port authority
stolen
taxi
tlc
tourist
Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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