THE BIDHANNAGAR police on Thursday arrested a taxi driver and his accomplice for allegedly threatening a US tourist after he landed at the Kolkata airport. The police action came after the tourist, Dustin, uploaded a video of a purported conversation with the two persons on his YouTube channel that soon surfaced on other social media platforms.

The police identified the arrested as Manoj Roy (52) and Alamgir Molla (34), a taxi driver. A suo motu case has been registered at the NSCBI Airport Police Station, police said.

According to Dustin, his “unsettling experience” began shortly after landing in Kolkata when he booked a local taxi to his hotel on Park Street. Despite clear instructions, the driver intentionally drove him nearly 15 km in the wrong direction towards a different hotel in Rajarhat, claimed Dustin. When Dustin confronted the driver about the incorrect destination and refused to pay the inflated fare, the situation escalated. Another man entered the vehicle on the pretext of mediation and soon threatened Dustin with physical harm.

Eventually, Dustin claimed, he was compelled to switch to another taxi. However, before he could leave, the second man demanded an additional Rs 100 for “parking and petrol,” forcing Dustin to pay a total of Rs 800 for a trip that would have cost Rs 500-600 via an app-based cab. The video uploaded by Dustin surfaced on other social media platforms as well and action was taken, police said.