Viral Video From Bali Shows Cab Driver Threatening Female Tourists At Knifepoint

A taxi driver in Bali threatened tourists with a weapon that looked like a knife, asking for more money, a terrifying video has revealed.

A three-minute video on YouTube showed one of the two female tourists who appeared to be American, pleading with the driver, reportedly identified as Yanuarius Toebkae. She could be heard asking him to let them leave the car and asking to speak with the police. She politely asked the cab driver to "let us out, please", while the man could be heard repeatedly saying "no".

The two tourists visiting the Indonesian island also claimed that he didn't even take them to where they asked to go.

The American tourists were apparently travelling through Kuta, a beach and resort area in the south of Bali, as per reports in the media. The two women offered the driver 50,000 Indonesian Rupiah, which is around £2.50, for the fare but he insisted on £39.29 ($50).

The video also showed when the tourists threatened the cab driver to call the police and began to bang on the window of the car, the driver appeared to strike them a number of times. The driver then reached for something, which the tourists claimed was a knife. He made a series of throat-cutting gestures while the female travellers continued to film the video.

At this point, one of the passengers urged the other to "just give him whatever you have" – though he continued to demand more.

After unlocking the car doors, the pair escaped the vehicle while screaming, flagging down a passerby while still filming the video. They can be heard telling somebody on the street that the "taxi driver just threatened us with a knife". The driver was seen getting back into the car and driving away.

The Indonesian police soon began an investigation and arrested the 29-year-old man at Juanda International Airport in East Java while attempting to flee the country. The cab driver is expected to face charges under multiple articles of the Indonesian Criminal Code including extortion and carrying a sharp weapon, according to Yahoo News. These charges carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

Meanwhile, travellers must be aware that Bali is set to charge a tourist tax this year, starting February 14. The tax will be applicable to every person (children included) entering the island and will be on top of Indonesia's visa fees. The fee for the upcoming tourist tax is £7.70 (€8.90, IDR 150,000, $10); with domestic Indonesian tourists being the only ones to be exempted from the tax.