Bolton Girl Sentenced For Lying About Taxi Driver Rape

A teenage girl who lied about being raped by a taxi driver has been sentenced.

The 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted perverting the course of justice.

At Bolton Crown Court today, Wednesday 22 June 2011, she was sentenced to 12 months in a young offenders institute.

In the early hours of Saturday 8 January 2011, a 34-year-old taxi driver picked up the girl from the S and D taxi rank in Farnworth after she had been returned by a colleague who suspected she would not pay her fare.

He took the girl to her home in Kearsley and when she admitted having no cash agreed to retain her ring at the taxi base until the following day when the fare could be paid.

The girl returned home and told her mother she had been raped by the taxi driver.

Police were called and a thorough investigation was launched.

The man was arrested and his car seized for forensic examination. CCTV from the taxi base was recovered and witness statements taken from the man's colleagues.

He was interviewed several times and spent 12 hours in police custody before being released on bail.

The girl was taken to hospital and had several appointments made for her to see a doctor and councillor at St Mary's specialist centre in Manchester.

Detective Constable Stuart Round, of Bolton CID, said: "The man took the girl home when no other driver would and even allowed her to pay her fare the following day, yet she repaid his kindness with a wicked lie that landed him in a police cell.

"He had to deal with the associated stigma of being accused of such a grave offence and we wasted a lot of time, effort and money on the investigation when it could have been better spent serving the community.

"The scope of our investigation in this incident proves how thoroughly we investigate all reports of rape and I hope this girl?s inexcusable actions in no way deter genuine victims from coming forward.

"But I want to send out the very clear message that we treat lying to the police about such an awful crime very seriously and will not hesitate to bring those who do so before the courts."