An Istanbul taxi driver has been jailed, fined, had his professional license revoked, and his vehicle impounded after driving a US streamer to his hotel in Taksim without using the taximeter and charging him the exorbitant sum of $160 (€138) for a 10-minute ride that normally costs around 300 Turkish liras — that is, about $6.
The incident, which has had a tremendous impact across all media outlets in Turkey, was reported yesterday evening and occurred following an event held at an entertainment venue located on Tersane Street, in the Karaköy neighborhood of the Beyoğlu district, where American rapper Travis Scott performed.
An American streamer named Auger who attended the event live-streamed his taxi ride from the venue to his hotel in Taksim, located 3.5 kilometers away by car — a trip that normally takes between 7 and 14 minutes at most at that time of day, depending on traffic conditions. The footage recorded by the streamer shows how the taxi driver asked him for €50 ($58) for the ride — an amount the content creator agreed to verbally — even though the taxi driver is required by law to turn on the taximeter and cannot negotiate a separate price with the customer.
However, according to the Turkish newspaper Sabah, upon arriving at his hotel and exiting the taxi, the streamer — who also posts footage of the recent Kanye West concert in Istanbul on his YouTube channel — discovered that an even higher amount had been charged to his credit card: in fact, far higher than the agreed-upon amount, since the taxi driver charged his card 7,300 Turkish liras, about $160 (or €138) at the current exchange rate. Legally, the fare for that taxi ride is around 300 liras, which is equivalent to $6.50 (or €5.60).
Fined over $3,000 and sent to prison for fraud
After reporting the incident on social media, the Istanbul Police opened an investigation through its Traffic Control Division. Subsequent inquiries made it possible to identify the driver — who picked up the US tourist on Tersane Street and took him to his hotel, located in the Istanbul neighborhood of Gümüşsuyu — and who goes by the initials H.A. The police also identified the vehicle he was driving and initiated legal proceedings against him.
The taxi driver received a total fine of 141,500 Turkish liras ($3,079, or €2,650) for violating the Road Traffic Law, specifically for the offenses of “failing to use the taximeter in taxi vehicles,” “failing to obey traffic signals,” and “failing to wear a seatbelt.” In addition, his taxi license was revoked and his vehicle was impounded. According to the latest reports, H. A. was also referred to the Istanbul Courthouse on charges of “fraud”, and after appearing before the judge, he was arrested and jailed.
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Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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