Taxi gang detained for ripping off foreigners: report One passenger was charged US$1,000 for a US$7 ride.
SHANGHAI - POLICE have broken up a Chinese taxi gang accused of routinely ripping off foreigners, including charging one passenger 1,000 dollars (S$1,386) for a seven-dollar ride, state media reported on Friday.
Eight members of the Shanghai-based gang have been detained on accusations they blackmailed 13 passengers in the past two months and stole 50,000 yuan (S$9,703) in cash or goods, the China Daily report said.
The drivers are suspected of charging passengers extremely high prices and then robbing or intimidating them when they refused to pay, the report added.
They worked from one train station in the city, targeting foreigners who had got off the high-speed rail service from Pudong International Airport, said Zhang Jian, an official in Shanghai's traffic law enforcement team.
Complaints had first been made by passengers in 2006, including one where a passenger was coerced into paying 1,000 dollars for a ride that should have cost around 50 yuan, according to the report.
An investigation since January has found drivers were issuing fake invoices, manipulating meters, and threatening to use force when passengers refused to pay, the report said. -- AFP
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