Metro

Set for a fare fight

A cabby identified as one of the worst offenders in a wide-scale scam that charged riders the double-fare suburban rate inside city limits will take his chances in court, law-enforcement sources said.

Joseph Kastner, 49, was named in September as the sixth-worst scamming cabby by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., and he is at the top of the list of the 45 “worst of the worst” drivers who will definitely be facing off with prosecutors in court, the sources said.

Kastner is accused of swindling riders out of $7,756.50 in 3,925 overcharges. The DA said he would hit the suburban “Rate 4” button on the taxi meter while carting fares around the five boroughs.

Like the 44 other drivers, he has been charged with scheming to defraud the public. If found guilty, he could end up at Rikers Island for a month or more.

Another 14 drivers who allegedly pulled the same scam were charged with more than 5,000 counts of petit larceny.

The Post exclusively reported in November that Kastner admitted that crooked drivers held informal crime conferences in cab garages to devise new ways to rip off customers.

“I met a series of drivers who decided to rob the public,” Kastner told the Taxi and Limousine Commission at a Sept. 30 administrative court hearing.

Others involved in the double-fare scam have either reached plea deals with the DA or are waiting to move through the legal system, the sources said.

Kastner said that he’s confident he’ll be victorious in court — and that others will then follow his example.

“Everyone is going to trial,” he told The Post.

Kastner’s next court appearance is scheduled for Feb. 1.

His lawyer didn’t return a message for comment.