Worcester Cab Driver Shot In Robbery Attempt
WORCESTER (CBS) -- Police said a cab driver who was shot in the hand during a robbery attempt Monday night was still in the hospital Tuesday afternoon.
The 62-year-old victim told police he had been dispatched to a home on Stockton Street for a fare shortly after 10 p.m., and was immediately approached by a man who had his face covered and was armed with a handgun.
When the suspect tried to rob him, the cab driver resisted, and the suspect shot him before fleeing in an unknown direction.
Police found the cab driver alert and sitting in his cab near the intersection of Stockton and Vernon Streets. He was taken to an area hospital with a non-life-threatening injury.
"It's a pretty sad state of affairs when a man's just out there trying to earn an honest living and he ends up being accosted by somebody trying to rob him, ends up shooting him over just a few dollars," Sgt. Kerry Hazelhurst said.
The cab driver, who had heart surgery within the last month, had just been cleared to return to work at the Red Cab Taxi Service, where he was an independent contractor. Red Cab said they haven't had a cab driver shot in decades.
Worcester Police searched the area of the shooting, but did not find the suspect. They said very little suspect information was available so far, and asked anyone with information to contact them.