An alleged driver for the Uber ride-sharing service filed assault charges against a Pattaya taxi driver, but the scuffle captured on a viral video may simply be a case of road rage.
Peerapat Kijsamret, 27, filed a complaint with Pattaya police June 8 against cabbie Somkiet Phusuwan, 42, over the incident which had spread on the internet earlier that day.
In the video, Somkiet is seen shouting at Peerapat on Second Road, accusing him of driving for Uber X, the smartphone-enabled taxi-hailing service that has been declared illegal by the Department of Land Transport.
The argument escalates and the Bo Thong cabbie starts using offensive language. Peerapat responds by taking off his shirt and getting ready to fight, even as a police officer is heard telling the two to break it up.
The video never shows any punches being exchanged, however.
Peerapat told police Somkiat showed him a video of him driving for Uber, which recently moved in Pattaya, but told police the clip was from February and he no longer works for the company.
The man said he simply was driving slowly on Second Road looking for a place to eat when Somkiat began honking his horn, rolled down his window and began swearing at him.
Somkiat later arrived at Pattaya Police Station and told a different story, alleging that Peerapat actually started the fight.
He claimed he came up behind Peerapat as he was driving slowly and honked to let him know he was going to overtake Peerapat’s car. But the younger man took offense, accelerated and cut him off. The two got out of their vehicles and it was then that Somkiat accused him of driving for Uber. Peerapat, he said, got aggressive and challenged him to fight.
Since Uber’s introduction into Pattaya there have been several incidents of local taxi drivers taking vigilante-style action to inflict street justice on those they suspect of driving for Uber. In at least one case, they wrongly accused the victim and police have warned drivers and their associations to leave the policing to authorities.
