Royal Marines fined for attack on taxi driver

TWO British Royal Marines were yesterday convicted of causing actual bodily harm following a disagreement over payment of a taxi fare after a night out in March.

The two, named as Jonathan Hart, 22, and Chris Douglas, 27, both of 45 Commando, Royal Marines, are expected to head back to the UK early next week.

At the time of the incident, they were in transit through the RAF base at Episkopi after serving in Afghanistan.

The duo were part of a unit of 150 personnel based in Helmand Province involved in a series of fierce hand-to-hand battles with the Taliban.

According to 58-year-old taxi driver Demetris Panayi, the pair were picked up in Yermasoyia and asked to be driven back to Paramali, where they were staying.

Panayi’s statement claims that when he discovered they did not have enough money to pay for their fare, he asked them to get out of the car, at which point they assaulted him, fracturing his jaw.

They then forced him out of the car and sped off in it, but struck a roadside barrier and a tree shortly afterwards.

British Bases spokesman Captain Crispin Coates yesterday confirmed that Douglas had been fined £500 while Hart was also convicted of a number of motoring offences such as careless driving, driving without insurance and taking a vehicle without consent. He was fined £1,000.

“Both apologised to the court for their behaviour,” Coates said. He added that, “the Bases welcome the completion of this case and we have co-operated fully with the Republic of Cyprus on this matter. We take the issue of discipline within Cyprus extremely seriously.”

While waiting for the court’s decision, the two Marines have been undertaking general duties within the SBAs.

Around 150 British service personnel, including members of 45 Commando, are at the Episkopi base for what is described by the MoD as a “decompression period” on the island to allow them to adjust to a more relaxed daily routine following active service in Afghanistan.