A private hire driver whose takings were grabbed by a thief has warned other cabbies to be on their guard.

Majid Niaz fears that a criminal gang is operating in Huddersfield after he and several driver colleagues were targeted in recent weeks.

A thief smashed his VW Passat window and stole over £100 of takings on Filbert Street at Birkby on Tuesday afternoon.

Mr Niaz, 40, later discovered that footage of the theft was caught on his dash-cam which he has passed to West Yorkshire Police.

Suspect caught on dashcam reaching for a tool

The footage appears to show a man using a hammer or similar tool to smash the Passat window. He then jumps into a car - driven by a suspected accomplice - which speeds off.

Mr Niaz said: “I went to the mosque and 15 minutes later came back and they had smashed the window and stolen the takings of about £120.

“Other taxi drivers in Birkby have had break-ins on their cars in the last two weeks. I think there have been about five incidents.”

He said the other incidents had happened on Halifax Old Road, Yew Street and Cobcroft Road.

Suspect running away from the scene of the break in

Mr Niaz, who lives at Birkby, has urged other drivers to take extra precautions.

“I don’t leave money or anything else in the car,” he said.

“The driver’s broken window has cost me £200 to replace.”

Mr Niaz, who works for Huddersfield Taxis at Aspley, said colleagues at the same firm had fallen victim to the thieves.

A spokesman for West Yorkshire Police said it was investigating the Filbert Street theft and appealed for anyone with information to get in touch.

He added: “The incident happened on Tuesday June 19 at around 2pm on Filbert Street.

“A male suspect approached a taxi which was parked up on Filbert Street and smashes the offside front window with a hammer.

“The suspect then reaches into the car and takes a money bag and flees the scene on foot and gets into a black car which drives off.

“Anyone with any information is asked to contact the police via 101 quoting crime reference number 13180297962 or information can be given to Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.”

No-one was available to comment from Huddersfield Taxis.