13/01/2014 Inside Out West Midlands

. The first thing I can remember is him saying that he thought that I

should kiss him and then he leaned over and he started kissing my face

and on my lips. A nightmare end to a night on the tiles. We're on the

trail of the bogus taxi drivers. Also, the feral city kittens,

desperate for a new home. It's a throw`away society, you don't want

your cat any more and you throw it out then that cat multi`plies. We

follow their escape to the country. I'm Mary Rhodes and this is Inside

Out. De Out. Could you accept a lift from a stranger? I think most would

say no, but after a few too many drinks it appears many people are

doing that. Police in Birmingham say that people risk being ripped off at

best, and at worst, young women have been sexually assaulted after

climbing into cars that they have flagged down. Anthony Bartram has

been given collusive access to a new undercover police unit set up to

stop dodgy drivers. Are you free tonight? Cheers, mate. There are

some cap drivers and no business to pick you up. Most are in it to make

quick cash and others have a darker motive, setting out to lure,

vulnerable, often drunken, lone women. They are known as pliers.

It's Friday night. Birmingham's buzzing. You're quite suspicious of

this guy? Yeah. In a few hours they'll be looking for a ride home.

Have you flagged down a private vehicle to get home? No. Because?

It's not safe. When you go home, what are the plans? Black cabs down

the road. That's the answer P David Humperson and his team want to hear.

Far too many pub and club`goers aren't thinking carefully enough.

Have you flagged down a private hire? In Manchester we have. And not

a taxi. ? Yeah. Do you know the safety implications there? No. No,

we didn't. The most important difference is that only Hackney

drivers can legally pick you up without booking of the private`hire

cabs are breaking the law, but the police are more worried about the

passengers. They'll take the chance. There's the driver and there nose

record of the journey or audit trail or backing, so therefore the driver

knows that and can take advantage of the female in her drunken state. The

police are not out to scare people, but when you hear about some of the

cases they've dealt with, the message really hits home. You don't

think when you're drunk. You just decide you're going home and getting

the closest taxi to get home. The car Sarah got into wasn't a cab at

all. You hear about stories, but I didn't think it was that common at

all. You all right, love? I thought you just have to be really unlucky,

but it shows me that it's easy to end up in that situation through no

fault of your own. You are just trying to get home. Unfortunately, I

didn't make it. The 19`year`old admits she had had way too much to

drink and didn't appreciate the risk she was taking by leaving the club

alone. When I get in a taxi that's when I relax and I'm, oh my feet are

hurting, it's so good to sit down, knowing you're on the way home.

That's what I would have been like that night. Sarah is one of 75 women

who have been sexually assaulted while trying to get home from nights

out in Birmingham in the past two years. It's like he planned it as

soon as I got in. He took me off to the complete opposite direction of

where I'd asked to go, but I didn't know the area, so I didn't know he

had gone the wrong way. Shakeel Ahmed had been prowlling up and down

Broad Street looking for a victim half the night. This bogus driver

was jailed before Christmas for five years for serious sexual assault

that he put Sarah through. The first thing I can remember is him saying

he thought that I should kiss him. Then he leaned over from the

drivers' side on to the passenger seat where I was sat and he started

kissing my face and on my lips. That's when I started panicking

feeling really uncomfortable. I remember clutching the sides of the

seat and just sitting there. I didn't really know what to do. I

just thought at that point it would have been best just to sit there and

let him carry on, because I thought I would end up in a worse situation

if I fought and tried to push him away and stuff. It's 11.00pm and the

taxi orcement team are out looking for pliers. Chris Neville is in

charge. What difference does it make? If you just get into a

private`hire car that you haven't booked, the journey isn't insured,

so you are putting yourself at risk and you must always book a

private`hire vehicle in advance. While 75 attacks in two years is a

worry, most of the city's 1300 legit cabs and 4,500 minicabs are working

hard. They want the rogues off the road. They are breaking the law and

they've got no part. You watch after 12.00am they'll be all over the

place. The police have to be more strict in the city centre. Not just

unofficial drivers without the plate and everything, but you've got

official drivers picking up people who they're not booked for. They're

looking for suspected pliers and it's not long before Chris and his

officers move in. They call this scarecrowing. It's like a scarecrow

driving the birds away. As soon as they see officers in yellow coats

they will tend to clear. Those who don't, get a talking to. We are from

the Taxi Licencing Office. Are you plying for hire? That one was a

private hire and he said he had dropped the passengers off and he

wasn't waiting, but he was. He was very keen to drive off as soon as he

realised what we were doing. There's an opportunity for them to check the

cars are safe and properly licenced. Almost 900 failed road`worthing

tests this year and 42% of those stopped breached licencing

conditions, but there's another side to this operation. The drivers won't

see this coming. As you saw, as soon as we showed up, the rogue drivers

made themselves pretty scarce, so I'm going out with a group of

undercover officers to find out what they're really up to. Wearing a

hidden camera I'm tagging along for the ride. We're about to head out to

look for some of the rogue drivers. How easy do you think it will be be?

Fairly easy. Especially around areas like this. There are lots of

students and they are out. It's midnight and we're posing as friends

looking for a ride home from the pub. Keeping an eye on us is another

secret policeman in an unmarked car. Hi, mate. Are you free? You'll have

to book, do you know? Could you take us home, could you? The first few

drivers are playing by the rules, insisting that we book them. But it

doesn't take long to find our first plier. Hiya. Are you free, mate? How

much is it? That will be great. Brilliant. Thank you. Cheers, mate.

We're on the move when the spotter is close behind.

These sting operations have been running since September with 20

teams of specially trained constables. While this suspect is

being dealt with, I join two more officers just after 1.00am for

another private`hire driver hanging around. Are you free, brother? He

agrees to take us without a booking. The team are rolling again. We don't

get far before the police move in to pull us over, but at this stage he

has no idea there's a couple of cops and reporter on board.

The game is up for our driver and the council's lice licence ``

licencing officers can take it from here. The officers in the back are

police officers. There we are, second driver of the night, picking

us up off the streets. He faces losing his licence now, all for a

?10 fare. And to cap it all, our cabbie now needs to call a taxi

himself because his car has been seized. Every time the undercover

teams go out, they catch a few more. It's happening because people are

willing to take a gamble and perhaps the best advice comes from someone

who gambled and lost. I have had a few panic attacks over things and I

just get scared a lot now. I can see the dangers in everything at the

minute. It's still quite fresh in my mind. If you've been affected by any

of the issues in the film or want to know how to avoid being the victim

of a bogus driver then go to the website.

Coming up later ` how a job as a Midlands mouser could be the answer

to London's feral cat crisis, but first, Joseph Carey Merrick, better

known as the Elephant Man was born in Leicester 150 years ago. The film

starring John Hurt and Anthony Hopkins made his famous, but we know

very little of the conditions that caused his deformities. Now, new

research could shed new light not only on his condition, but the

causes of cancer. # I am not an animal... Joseph Merrick was

intelligent, articulate and likeable, yet because of his

appearance he's gone down in history as the Elephant Man, shunned and

avoided and attacked and abused. These are Joseph Merrick's bones.

Inside Out has been granted rare access to film them and the casts

taken from his body. Merrick left his remains to science, but previous

attempts to extract DNA failed because the skeleton was bleached to

clean it. Now, 125 years after his death, new techniques mean these

bones may finally yield their secrets. He suffered from a very

severe form of overgrowth, where the tissues in certain portions and

parts of his body were massively overgrown, hence the reference to an

elephant. Other parts of his body actually had quite a normal

appearance. This tells us that whatever the underlying genetic

problem was, it is one that his relevant to the fundamentals of the

way in which a cell grows and knows when to stop growing. The research

has barely begun, but already there's huge excitement about what

may be uncovered. Whilst I wouldn't predict that Merrick is sitting on

the cure for cancer, it is through studies of this nature that we will

have a better understanding of what it is determines how a cell moves

from a normal state into this abnormal process of disregulated

cell growth. Merrick's story fascinates people across the world.

Jeanette Sitton and stroS stroS have been researching why he continues to

intrigue us. `` Mae Siu`Wae Stroshane have been researching why

he continues to intrigue us. He was very brave and it makes us feel that

if Joseph could be brave like that, in the face of everything that's

going on with him, then perhaps that would give me some inspiration to

cope with my own problems in life. I was an orphan in Hong Kong and

adopted so I went through abandonment and had to grow up

feeling that finding my own quest for inner worth and self`worth and

humanity. There have been many theories about Herrick's condition

`` Merrick's condition. We can't be sure what it was, but it may have

been Proteus syndrome, an overgrowth of bones named after a Greek sea God

who changed shape. There are several related illnesses and despite

changes in our attitudes they're hard to endure. We have

unfortunately had one suicide of a young man in his 20s because of the

difficulties he had of living with the Proteus`related condition. We

have helped some other families whose late teenagers were finding it

difficult to deal with and had suicidal thoughts. It isn't

something that goes away. It can get more difficult as the years go on

and equally into older life. Joseph Merrick was born in the Midlands on

what is now a very unremarkable street in Leicester. Thousands walk

through it without realising it's the birthplace of such an

extraordinary individual. Inside Out has asked two historians, Richard kl

Gill and Stephen butt to devise a Merrick tour. And the first person

to experience it is Jon Merrick, a descendant of Joseph. People come

from all over the world to see the birthplace of Joseph Merrick. And it

was here. We are outside what would have been the last house on these

streets and he was born in the last`but`one, but no house, no

street, no plaque. How would he have been treated in the early days? Very

badly. His step`mother more or less threw him out of the house. He was

sent out to hawk ribbons and other things on doorsteps, but doors were

slammed in his face. What with doors slammed in his face and jeered at in

the street and stones thrown at him, he made no money. One day he came

home having made nothing and his father beat him savagely. That

decided it. He left home and voluntarily went to the work deserve

house. `` workhouse. In 1884 he left the work house and this is where he

came. This is the famous theatre of variety, the Gaiety Palace of

Varieties. The landlord was Sam Torr. Not a lot left here now. It

must have been a bit like King Kong, only instead of a glile la, it was

`` gorilla, it was Joseph Merrick. He stood tall and appeared on stage

and warned the people behind the curtain was a terrible creature and

he couldn't guarantee the safety of the audience and then the drums

would roll and for poor Joseph Carey Merrick it was a living. Probably

the only living he could make, given his circumstances at the time. He

chose to go into the theatre, didn't he? I think Joseph has left us two

legacies, one is his remains. Hopefully they'll actually lead to

people being cured or relieved of various conditions. He also leaves a

story which is being used to help breakdown precedence. I am not an

animal, I am a human being. Joseph Merrick's status as an iconic

figure of Victorian London is assured and in his Leicester home

town there are now serious proposals being considered for a permanent

memorial. But perhaps the most valuable legacy of this amazing man

would be a scientist to unlock the secrets of his disorder and use them

to develop treatments for cancers and disfigurements.

Peaceful, beautiful and tranquil. Welcome to the Cotswolds. It's easy

to see why living here would appeal, but it's offering a solution to a

problem in the capital. Animal welfare charities estimate there are

tens of thousands of feral cats living in London. They don't make

great house pets so normally they would be put down, but one charity

is offering them a job as a mouser in the Midlands. It could be an

answer to London's cat crisis. Jonny Pitts has been to find out. From the

corners of the city streets, they watch. Piercing eyes, sharp teeth

and even sharper claws. You can't put your washing out. They're there

and running at the back door. Huge gangs of them ready to pounce on

their unsuspecting prey. Cats. Yep, that's right, feral cats. There are

thousands of them here in London and a problem has reached crisis point.

It's a throw`away society. If you don't want your cat you throw it

out. Don't get it newted. That cat will multiply and we end up with

hundreds here. In a matter of months we have 20 cats. We are here away

about how a move to the Midlands can save the lives of London's strays. I

am here in wale them stow, because the tail starts here `` Walthamstow,

because the tail starts here, sorry. When did it start? One cat had a

litter and then they bred from then. That was about three or four years

ago. This has been going out. Now they've come across to my side of

the road and as you can see there are some cats out there they've been

breeding and breeding. As you can see, there's about 15 out there at

the moment. You've got three little kittens. That one is pregnant at the

moment. That is the Tom that is inpregnating them all. He doesn't

belong to the ferals. He's the culprit? Yeah. Now, the cats are

starting to get sick. In fact, it's got so bad, she has had to call in

the cat cavalry to help. Hopefully the idea will be they'll come around

this side, so they're probably going to see them standing around this end

first off until they work out where the entrance is to the trap. Then

hopefully once there inside they'll step on this to act viT so the doors

swing close. `` activate it so the doors swing close. It doesn't take

long. They'll come close. They are used to see people, but not used to

being handled. They're going in. What do you do now? Hopefully he'll

stand on the trap in the right place. He's quite light, so

hopefully he's all right. We might have a bit of difficulty with this

one. Now that one has gone in... Oh, wow. That's one. Number two. Six.

This is going quite well. Not too bad. Sometimes it's really easy.

It's easy if there's a lot of cats to start with. It can be difficult

if there's one or two that you're after. Hayley, what happens if

you're not able to rehome the cats in The tough reality is they would

have to be put to sleep if we don't have the homes readily available for

them. But there are those who are busy house hunting for the cats and

these days they're looking outside of the city. Over the years, it's

really become less and less feasible to resite them back to where they're

from. That's where SNIP has become a specialist finding them a future

away from the city and we found the best way is to be out in the

country, in a stables or a farm. In her spare time, Hayley also

volunteers as a driver for the cat rehoming charity, SNIP. We have

success seal and Stanley `` Cecille and Stanley. They are brother and

sister. They came from a feral colony in Tottenham. It's a bleak

future in the urban situation. There's a lot of deG gation and

there's an increasing rise in cruelty and people who don't want

them around, obviously, because of noise or smell or whatever it may be

and I can understand that in a built`up city. What parts of the

country do you rehome? We have done a lot in the colts woelds and in

decommission `` Cotswolds and in and around the Midlands, Stratford,

Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. We have been all over. The two cats are

going from Cockney kitties to colts Cotswold kitties. We need them for

vermin control. This time of year is when all the mice and the furies

start to come in. We have chickens on the yard, so they attract vermin

too. It's perfect having a couple of feral cats on the yard. They are

quite entertaining too. There will be some things to get used to. I bet

you don't see many of these on the Tottenham Court Road. How feral are

they? Fairly timid to say the least. We have Stanley and Cecille. They're

about four to five months old. Inside Andrew has rereceived a prime

spot for them. They're own flushy cat penthouse. The idea of releasing

up here is they can get their Barings. It's good, because they

have a good view. We normally have the haystacks, so it will be a

natural ladder for them. I think it will be great and it's out of the

wind so it will be nice. It is. The cats will live in the cage for ten

days to adjust to their new surroundings before Andrew will be

allowed to let them out. The only challenge now is getting them into

their new home. Stanley is straight in there, but Cecille proves a

little more reluctant. After a little persuasion, she's in. Make

sure you're feeding them twice a day. On the tenth day try to release

them early evening when it's quiet around and no dogs and things awell.

It's mission accomplished for Hayley as he heads back to London. Yeah, I

think it's a really nice feeling and I know they'll be safe here. There's

no main roads, no train lines, which there would be in London. They're

going to have a really nice life here. Ten days later and our cameras

are back for the big release. We don't see them very much. It's funny

when I come in, in the morning and put the light on, I can see

testimony bouncing around in the cage, but as soon as I come this

end, they're gone, disappeared into the corner. How will they react once

the door to freedom is open? I'll leave the cage open and put the

fresh food outside. And after a careful sniff around, it's all

systems go as the kittens explore their new home. Well, our Cockney

kittens have been living their country lifestyle for just over a

month now, so I've come to see how they're settling into their new

home. How are you? Good. Nice to see you again. And you. How are the cats

getting on and where are they? Somewhere up there, but getting on

really well. They are hunting and they're very active. We don't see

that much of them in the day time. Other than feeding time. But the two

of them, they seem to have settled in. They haven't gone very far. Do

they manage to bring things back? They have. They've started. Not a

lot. They're still young. Hopefully they won't bring any, because we

won't have any. How does it feel to know you've saved these cats from

being put down? It feels really good. It's quite gratifying. It's

rewarding seeing them develop as well. And to know that ` because I

didn't know and I wasn't aware, that so many were being destroyed. We

wanted pest control and SNIN have given them a home and provided a new

life. It really feels good. Maybe you've got a story that I should

hear about. If so, drop me an e`mail.

I would love to hear from you. That's it for this week. I'll see

you next time. Goodbye for now. We we veal how many more people are

stealing gas and hecktry due to rises prices. That's next Monday on

Inside Out. Hello, I'm Ellie Crisell with your

90-second update. The PM has backed fracking. He's

promised councils incentives if they let companies drill for shale gas.

Critics have called the offer a bribe, but the Government claims the

process will give us cheaper energy. More at 10pm.

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