Taxi driver endures knife horror in Christmas Day robbery

The Cork-based taxi driver Suleman Ahmed was robbed at knifepoint by a man he had earlier picked up while working at 3am on Christmas Day morning.

The Evening Echo reports that Mr Ahmed said: "When the knife was at my throat I only thought of my son.

"He told me three times that I would never see my family again, and that if I tried to call the Gardaí he would come after me," said Mr Suleman, who first spoke about the attack on the Neil Prendeville Show on Red FM.

"I thought he was going to kill me. He had a knife at my throat which he was holding with both hands and he was putting a lot of pressure on it."

Mr Suleman held the knife with his hands to keep that pressure off his neck and his hands were so badly cut that he lost sensation in one finger and his doctor said that he has likely sustained nerve damage due to the depth of the cut.

"I had a feeling that there was something not right with this man before the attack, although he was not obviously drunk or on drugs. He had asked to go to College Road so I stopped by the Bon Secours Hospital because it was lit, and I thought there might be people around or CCTV cameras.

"He asked to go further but I said I had another fare so he had to get out. Than he attacked me.

"The gardaí were great, they came to my house on Christmas Day and they have been really helpful. I’ve lived in Cork for 13 years, I love Cork, and I love the people here, so I want everyone to know that this man is out there, and I want him to be caught so that no one else here is attacked,” he said.

Mr Ahmed, originally from Pakistan and living in Rochestown, is married with a three-and-a-half-year-old son.

He described the suspect as being 24-25-years-old, of medium height and build with brown hair.

Gardaí are investigating and are currently examining CCTV footage. Anyone with information is asked to contact Togher Garda Station on 021-4947120.