Cabbie broke my leg, says warden

A parking attendant told today how his leg was broken when he was deliberately run down by a taxi driver.

Gerald Lewis, 42, had his left leg fractured in three places and has been left with a severe limp.

This week he became the first Westminster attendant accompanied on patrol by Met officers. In return, attendants will tip off police about crime.

And as police mounted the highprofile patrols in Westminster to protect attendants, the father of two today spoke about the attack.

Mr Lewis was on patrol when he spotted a white van on double yellow lines in Cranbourn Street, near Leicester Square.

Dressed in his distinctive blue and yellow uniform and peaked cap, he noted the van's registration and began to cross the road to issue a ticket. When he was halfway, a taxi parked further along the street started up, went into reverse gear and shot backwards. The back of the cab struck Mr Lewis, sending him crashing to the ground in agony.

The taxi driver watched as Mr Lewis tried, and failed, to stand. He had to crawl on to the pavement where he collapsed after calling for help on his radio.

"It was agony, terrible," said Mr Lewis, of Manor Park. "It was a deliberate attack - the driver looked at me before I crossed the road and waited until I was halfway across.

"It was a one-way street and yet he suddenly chose that moment to go into reverse. The surgeon said there were two breaks in the ankle and one just above."

He was off work for six months. "It still hurts when I walk but I have to work to earn

money for my two boys and my wife," said Mr Lewis, who lived in Liberia before settling in London.

His employer, parking contractor NCP, said it had investigated and concluded the attack was intentional. Police are also investigating.

Colleague Denis Ojaga, 35, who was punched in the chest by a motorist in Soho, said: "It is a difficult job but an essential one. Hopefully the police presence will make a difference."