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Johannesburg - A New York Police Department (NYPD) detective has landed in hot water after being filmed having a raging rant against an Uber driver.
Passenger Sanjay Seth earlier this week recorded a video of Detective Patrick Cherry shouting at his Uber driver.
Seth then uploaded the video onto YouTube where it has since reached over 1.5 million views.
Seth said the incident was sparked off by the Uber driver hooting at an unmarked car that was allegedly attempting to park without hazard lights or indicators on.
“The Uber driver pulled around and gestured that he should use his blinker, casually and non-offensively, and kept driving us,” wrote Seth on the YouTube video description.
“The policeman quickly pulls up behind us and this is what happens,” said Seth.
The video (see below) then depicts Cherry verbally lashing out at the Uber driver and using a number of expletives in anger. The police officer also slammed the Uber driver’s car door shut.
Mocking the driver’s English pronunciation, Cherry even asked: “How long have you been in this country?”
“The only reason you’re not in handcuffs going to jail and getting summonses in the precinct is because I have things to do,” Cherry shouted.
“That’s the only reason that’s not happening. Because this isn’t important enough to me. You’re not important enough,” Cherry went on to say to a nodding driver.
Watch the video:
Cherry has since been stripped of his shield and gun after the video went viral this week, according to the New York Post.
The New York Post has also reported that Detective Cherry has been removed from the NYPD’s Joint Terrorism Task Force. Cherry is currently doing desk duty, according to the paper.
“No good cop should watch that video without a wince,” NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton said on Wednesday at a press conference.
“Because all good cops know that officer just made their jobs a little bit harder,” he added.
Uber growth in New York
Ride-sharing app Uber has experienced strong growth in New York.
Uber vehicles outnumber yellow taxis in New York, according data from the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission last month.
The data revealed that Uber has 14 088 cars operating in New York while there are 13 587 medallion taxis in the city.
Other police encounters
When it comes to regulatory reasons, Uber drivers have also had run-ins with police in other parts of the world, including here in South Africa.
In January, Fin24 reported that traffic police impounded over 60 Uber cars in Cape Town because the service’s drivers didn’t have the right permits to operate in the Western Cape.
Meanwhile, Uber has also faced regulatory pressure in Seoul in South Korea this year for not complying with local laws.
