Alleged taxi sex assault never occurred, defence lawyer argues

The Region of Waterloo courthouse is seen in Kitchener, Ont., on Monday, June 23, 2014. (Terry Kelly / CTV Kitchener)

An alleged sexual assault in a taxi in a Waterloo parking lot never occurred, the lawyer representing the accused driver said Wednesday.

Jafar Zamel, 47, admitted in court to performing an indecent act with a female passenger in his vehicle, but said that it was only after she exposed herself to him – and that he did not sexually assault the woman.

The allegations centre around a night in May 2013.

Zamel’s lawyer, Thomas Brock, argued Wednesday that the victim had alcohol and cocaine in her system at the time of the events.

Brock also questioned why the woman “got back in the cab” after an alleged sexual conversation with Zamel, why she did not run for help and why she paid her fare before leaving the vehicle for good.

“I’m submitting … (the sexual assault) never happened,” he said.

At the time of the incident, there was no camera in Zamel’s cab.

In the wake of the allegations against Zamel and five other local taxi drivers – one of which has led to a conviction and two of which remain before the courts – many local taxi companies have begun moving in the direction of mandating cameras in all vehicles.

Peter Neufeld, the president of Waterloo Taxi, says his company could make cameras mandatory for its 91 vehicles as early as next week – in which case they could be installed by the end of the year.

“Some of the drivers have installed cameras on their own, but I think it’s time to go fleet-wide,” he said.

“The behaviour of people changes immediately once they think they’re being filmed – they tend to behave."

Zamel was driving for Waterloo Taxi at the time of the alleged sexual assault.

He was suspended without pay after the allegations came to light.

Since then, Neufeld said, there has been no communication between Zamel and the company.

As Brock outlined his argument, Zamel sat quietly in the courtroom, listening to proceedings through an Arabic interpreter.

The case returns to court later this month.