Brick Police Investigate Early Morning Armed Robbery of Cab Driver

Brick Police are investigating an early morning robbery of an Asbury Park taxi driver on Dock Road.

According to Capt. John Rein, police received a 9-1-1 call at 6:45 a.m. Monday from a taxi driver reporting he had been robbed at gunpoint by three men he was taking back to Brick from Belmar.

The taxi driver, Obaidullah Amir, 29, of Asbury Park, told police he picked up three men in Belmar who told him to stop in front of the house at 65 Dock Road.

Ami reported one of the men in the rear seat grabbed him from behind and pointed what he believed was a handgun to his head. The two other men, one in the front seat and the other in the rear seat, then reached into the victim’s pockets and removed cash.

According to Rein, the victim reported that he struggled with the suspects, during which time the driver’s side window was smashed out with his elbow.  Upon grabbing the cash, the suspects fled the taxi toward the rear of the Dock Road home where they were dropped off, then jumped a fence.

Amir – who was treated by Brick Police EMS for scratches left on his neck after the struggle – left his cab and ran to a Sunoco gas station on Mantoloking Road where he called police, Rein said. Amir’s phone was later found in his cab. In all, Amir told police that the robbers had gotten away with about $2,700.

Officers searched the area of the robbery on foot and with a K9 unit, Rein said, but did not find the suspects, who were all described as white males in their early-to-mid 20s, between 5-foot-7 and 5-foot-9 toll, medium build, short dark hair and clean shaven. The suspect who was in the front passenger seat was reported to be wearing a multi-colored shirt, Rein said.

Police are asking anyone with information on the incident to contact Detective Robert Shepherd of the Brick Twp. Police Investigations Division at 732-262-1120.