A DRIVER of an unlicensed taxi in Longgang District who swapped fake banknotes for real ones belonging to passengers before robbing them was arrested Sunday, the Daily Sunshine reported Wednesday.

The man, whose identity was not disclosed, swapped fake 50- and 100-yuan banknotes with the real ones his passengers paid him, and then robbed them, the newspaper quoted a victim surnamed Zhang as saying.

“I handed him a 50-yuan note and waited for my change, but he asked for another one. Without a second thought, I gave him another 50-yuan note as I was in a hurry,” she said.

Zhang, who took the illegal vehicle to Dapeng after waiting for a taxi for 20 minutes, said her second 50-yuan note was also rejected after the driver changed it for a fake note without her noticing.

Zhang said gave him a 100- yuan note, which was then also rejected, the newspaper said.

Zhang sensed something was wrong and tried to get out of the vehicle. Before she could do so, the driver held a knife to her neck and asked for