A TAXI driver sexually assaulted a young woman after lying that he had been sent to pick her up in Bury town centre.

Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court heard how Tariq Mohammed, who worked for Magnum Whiteline Private Hire Taxis, had not been allocated the booking which the woman had made following a night out in Manchester city centre.

Mohammed went on to sexually assault her after she had failed to get money out of a cash machine to pay her fare.

Thomas Worsfield, prosecuting, said the victim had been dropped off by a Uber taxi close to Bury Town Hall in the early hours of the morning on January 22 last year.

She called another taxi from Magnum Whiteline to take her home to Whitefield and around five minutes later a taxi from the firm driven by Mohammed drove past her before stopping and turning around.

The woman walked over and got into the front passenger seat before telling the driver she needed to stop at a cash machine to withdraw money with which she could pay him.

She directed him to a garage on Manchester Road which was on the way to Whitefield but she was unable to access any money from her account.

Mohammed continued driving towards Whitefield, turning on to Sunny Bank Road and then stopping outside the Sir Robert Peel pub.

A discussion took place about whether the victim's friend could pay her fare and she phoned him to ask.

Mr Worsfield said: "While she was on the phone, the defendant put his hand on her neck and squeezed it as if to massage her.

"She told him in no uncertain terms not to touch her, but her removed his hand and put it on her leg, sliding it under her dress and touched her underwear."

The woman was able to continue speaking to her friend and arranged for him to pay via Paypal and a transfer of £12.50 was made.

Mohammed, 41, then dropped the woman off close to her home address and she contacted police the following morning to report the assault.

A police officer attended the offices of Magnum Whiteline that evening and arrested Mohammed, of John Roberts Close, Rochdale.

The firm provided the officer with details of their allocated fares that night and records of the victim's booking and they showed she had been allocated to a different driver who had logged 'no fare' meaning she was not present when he arrived to pick her up.

"In short, the defendant had picked her up having seen on her on the street," said Mr Worsfield, who added that Mohammed, who was later found guilty of one count of sexual assault, maintained throughout his trial that he had not even picked her up.

In a victim impact statement, she said the incident and the subsequent trial had been "very stressful" and had led her considering whether or not to wear a dress when she went out.

Rhia Abukhalil, defending, said Mohammed, who she described as "a conscientious worker", was a man of previously good character and there was a "good chance" of rehabilitation.

Handing the married father of one a 20 month prison sentence suspended for two years, Recorder Abigail Hudson, said: "I have seen CCTV of your victim getting into your taxi and she was plainly drunk which would have been obvious to you.

"She was alone, drunk, in an unfamiliar area and a significant walk from her home and she was in the dark. Fortunately, she is obviously a very strong woman and she kept her wits about her."

Recorder Hudson also imposed a one year restraining order and a ten year sexual harm prevention order preventing Mohammed being alone with young or vulnerable females.

His taxi driver license was removed and he will have to complete a 30 day rehabilitation requirement and 200 hours of unpaid work.