A man who falsely presented himself as a taxi driver has been convicted after a Scottish court found he deliberately misled and detained a young woman during what should have been a routine journey home, before subjecting her to serious and distressing misconduct inside his vehicle.

The case, heard at Falkirk Sheriff Court, highlighted the dangers of unlicensed transport and the vulnerability of individuals traveling alone at night. Jurors concluded that Mahmoud Kalawizada, 32, exploited trust and circumstance to place a 22-year-old woman in a situation of fear and harm, following a late-night encounter in Stirling.

Kalawizada’s dark blue BMW was parked in a loading bay beside the rank, creating the impression that it was operating as a legitimate taxi. According to evidence heard by the court, the woman approached the vehicle believing it was part of the official queue and asked whether it was available.

Although Kalawizada held no taxi licence and was not legally permitted to offer transport services, he indicated that he could take her home. Reassured by the vehicle’s location and his response, the woman provided her address and entered the car.

She sat in the front passenger seat, later explaining that the rear doors appeared to be locked, further reinforcing her assumption that the car was operating as a taxi.

A Journey That Took an Alarming Turn
Woman showing destination place to taxi … | Stock Video | Pond5

Rather than driving directly to the destination provided, Kalawizada diverted from the expected route. The journey, which should have been straightforward, instead extended across areas of Clackmannanshire, with multiple unexpected stops along the way.

The woman later told the court that she began to feel increasingly uneasy as the car moved further away from her home. One stop was made at a fast-food outlet, and another involved the driver pulling over to speak to her in a manner that caused significant discomfort and concern.

Eventually, the car entered a quiet residential street in Tillicoultry, an area unfamiliar to the passenger. At that point, her fear escalated.

“I was terrified,” she told the jury. “I knew this wasn’t where I lived, and I didn’t understand why we were there.”

When the car stopped, she heard a clicking sound that she believed indicated the doors had been locked. She attempted to leave the vehicle but was initially unable to open the door.

Fear, Resistance, and Escape

Evidence presented in court described how Kalawizada attempted to move closer to the woman inside the confined space of the vehicle, touching her without consent. The situation caused her extreme distress.

In a moment of desperation, she screamed loudly in an attempt to attract attention from nearby residents. That reaction, she said, appeared to startle him.

“I screamed as loudly as I could,” she told the court. “I was trying to get someone to hear me.”

Her actions proved critical. She managed to open the door and escape the vehicle, after which Kalawizada drove away from the scene.

Shaken and in tears, the woman immediately contacted her boyfriend, who came to collect her. She later described struggling to process what had happened, stating that the experience left her deeply distressed.

Police Investigation and Corroborating Evidence
Bogus taxi driver abducted terrified clubber, 22, in Scots town before sexually assaulting her in locked car

Police were notified shortly afterward and launched an investigation. Officers reviewed CCTV footage from the surrounding area, including Ellistoun Drive, where the incident occurred.

While cameras did not capture visual evidence of the incident itself, an audio recording from nearby equipment recorded a high-pitched scream followed by sounds of distress at approximately 1:56 a.m. Prosecutors told the court that this audio strongly supported the woman’s account.