A bus driver used a ‘spit kit’ to bring a foul-mouthed young mum to justice.
Mohammed Tawasin used the DIY forensic equipment to trap Hayley Warburton after she spat on his face during a racist tirade.
The 21-year-old mum objected to the £2 fare after boarding the First Bus service with her baby daughter.
Warburton screamed racial abuse at Mr Tawasin for more than 12 minutes in front of around 20 passengers during the incident last June.
Sean Brady, prosecuting, said furious Warburton ended up squirting a sun oil bottle at the driver’s face as she exited the bus on Ashton Old Road, before spitting and fleeing with the baby in a buggy.
Warburton, of Horstead Walk, Levenshulme, told Manchester magistrates court that she had sprayed and spat at the driver but denied using racist language.
However, she was convicted of racially aggravated assault and sentenced to 150 hours of unpaid work for the community, as well as being ordered to pay £150 compensation to the driver and £100 costs.
Mr Brady said Mr Tawasin had used his spit kit, which is issued to drivers to prevent abusive incidents, to swab his face and the sample matched
Warburton’s DNA.
In a statement to the court, the driver said the attack had left him questioning whether to carry on with the job.
He said: “I believe she did this because she is racist and didn’t want to pay the fare and wanted a fight.
“This has left me terrified and angry. The fact she squirted oil into my face has shook me up – it could have been anything.”
Passing sentence, the chairman of the bench said: “What you did was very serious and aggravated by the racial abuse.”
Manchester Evening News
