Two uniformed cops at Kennedy Airport broke protocol when they forced a California woman to pay a taxi fare with her iPod simply because her credit card had been declined, the Port Authority said yesterday.
Natalie Lenhart, 20, said she was never given a chance to come up with the approximate $49 fare, and was instead threatened with jail if she didn’t hand over the music player.
The cops also should have filed a report of the incident that includes the officers’ names so that there is an official record, said PA spokeswoman Candace McAdams, who would not confirm the cops were from her agency.
But she did say PA cops would be the first on scene in such a situation.
Cabby Mohammed Islam reluctantly called 911 after Lenhart ran her card several times through the taxi credit-card reader to no avail.
The cops said she had to come up with “something of value” to pay the fare – and her only option was the $140 iPod.
McAdams said “appropriate action” would be taken if PA cops were found not following procedures.
The unorthodox transaction caused weeks of turmoil for both Lenhart and Islam.
Nearly two months after the incident, the Taxi and Limousine Commission has stepped in to assist in brokering an agreement.
Lenhart wants to send the fare and a self-addressed, pre-paid envelope to TLC headquarters, and for Islam to use it to return the red iPod, said a source briefed on the matter.
“I just want this to be over,” Lenhart said yesterday.
A PA customer-service representative told Lenhart’s mother, Lynne, more than a week ago in an e-mail that everything “was investigated on this end.
“Unfortunately, you could not provide the names of the police officers whom you stated forced your daughter to give her iPod to the taxi driver.
“The investigation revealed that there was no official record filed of this incident,” the e-mail concluded.
The miscommunication occurred because that representative didn’t coordinate with PA police, a source said.
The officers involved have not been identified, and could not be located at JFK yesterday.