A man got into the car of a pizza delivery driver wrongly thinking it was a taxi and then carried out a vicious attack when he was told to get out.
Detectives have now released CCTV images taken from cameras in Birmingham city centre in a bid to identify the suspect.
The 27-year-old fast-food delivery man was driving along Moat Lane near to St Martin’s Church in Birmingham city centre when someone ran in front of his car and then climbed into the passenger seat.
The driver tried to explain to the man that it wasn’t a taxi and asked him to get out − but this only made the man violent and he punched the victim in the face.
He suffered a fractured nose which required an operation at hospital. The man is described as white, aged 35 to 40, 6ft tall, broad shoulders and short brown hair.
Officers want to hear from anyone who recognises him or who witnessed what happened at around 4.20am on Saturday 14 December.
Detective Constable Carmel Rees, from Force CID, said: “This was a completely unprovoked attack against a man simply carrying out his job in the city centre.
“The offender may have been confused about whether or not the vehicle was a taxi but that is absolutely no excuse for this violent attack which happened after the driver simply asked him to get out of the vehicle.
“We have been following a number of lines of enquiry to trace this individual and have been scouring CCTV footage − I would now ask anyone who recognises the man in the image to contact us as soon as possible.”
Anyone with information should contact DC Rees at Force CID on 101 or call the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
