Taxi Ride Turns into Alleged Robbery

On Saturday just after midnight, a taxi cab driver picked up a customer at one local billiard hall and was taking him to another—but the ride went sour after the two had a disagreement. The passenger snatched a radio and CD player and the two had a physical confrontation, according to a Gwinnett County Police incident report.

Oscar Angulo-Cortes picked up Oscar Magallanes at Lucky 77 Billiards at Buford Hwy and N. Norcross-Tucker Road in the City of Norcross, according to a statement Angula-Cortes gave to Gwinnett Police. He said the passenger requested to go to Coronas Billiards at Jimmy Carter Boulevard and Peachtree Industrial Boulevard, about five miles away. 

“But as he was driving there Magellanes stated he was going there to buy some drugs,” the incident report stated. “Upon hearing this, Cortes said he told Magallanes he was not going to drive him there…” The passenger reportedly told the driver to take him home and a fight apparently ensued about the cost of the taxi. 

Angula-Cortes pulled into the Texaco at Jimmy Carter Boulevard and Buford Highway in an unincorporated part of Norcross, according to his statement to police, where the passenger attempted to strike him. Angula-Cortes said he jumped out and grabbed a lug wrench out of his trunk to defend himself.

Magallanes then snatched a portable CD player and microphone radio and took off, according to the statement. A chase and fight ensued, with Magallanes eventually throwing the stolen items onto the roof of a nearby business. 

Magallanes was picked up by Gwinnett Police and placed under arrest on charges of robbery by sudden snatching, simple battery and battery. The passenger relates the story differently, claiming that the taxi driver tried to charge him $50 for the ride and that the driver also offered him cocaine.

“Magallanes initially said he only took Cortes’ DVD player because he was angry at him, but he later refuted this statement and denied taking anything from Cortes,” the responding officer wrote in his report of the incident. “Magallanes’ statements became more sporadic and random, and he eventually stopped answering my questions and just began rambling and cursing at random.”