Police DNA screening in city estate for murdered taxi driver 'progressing well'

Aug 29 2009 by Mark Cowan, Birmingham Mail

“Over 300 households have been visited, most residents have been willing to assist officers by agreeing to have a DNA, photographs and fingerprints taken.

“It is expected this part of the investigation will take several weeks to complete and we would like to thank the community for their co-operation to date.”

Meanwhile, bosses of Birmingham’s taxi industry are to work with police chiefs on drawing up a new safety and security policy for drivers.

Senior officers have already acknowledged drivers may not always have received a consistent approach, which had dented their confidence in police, and pledged to work closer.

Following Mr Arshad’s murder, the two sides pledged to work together to develop new protocols on reporting crime.

Taxi drivers’ spokesman Waseem Zaffar, from union Unite, said they had enjoyed “frank, open, honest discussions” with officers on the policing around private hire drivers.