UK cabbie who drove missing Indian traced

LONDON: Detectives trying to trace the taxi driver who picked up Indian student Gurdeep Hayer, missing from Manchester since January 2, located the cabbie on Monday.His questioning revealed that Hayer had asked him to stop a few minutes into the journey, paid the fare and got out of the taxi. The driver confirmed he had collected Hayer outside a night club called Sankeys at around 2:15 am on January 2. Hayer (20) was picked up just kilometers away from the place where Anuj Bidve was killed on December 26, raising concerns among the Indians in the area about their security.Detective inspector Mark Radford of the Greater Manchester Police CID said, "We have new information into the last known sighting of Gurdeep, which we have released in the hope it may jog someone's memory, who may have seen him getting out of the taxi or in the area shortly afterwards." Hayer had travelled from Birmingham in the midlands of England to Manchester, which is in the northwest of England, on December 31 to celebrate New Year's Eve. He stayed with friends in the city.He went out again with friends on the night of January 1 and was seen leaving Sankeys on his own around 2.15 am on January 2. "He was seen leaving Sankeys but did not manage to make it back to his friends' house," a spokesman said.
Last seen, Hayer was wearing a navy blue polo shirt, black or blue jeans and trainers. Police described him as "Asian, with a medium build, about 5ft 11in tall with spiky black hair with stubble; and speaks with a Midlands accent".Detective Sergeant Alan Hamlin, of South Manchester CID, said, "Gurdeep's family are clearly fraught with worry for him, as nobody has seen or heard anything from him. They simply want to know he is safe." He appealed to anyone who might have noticed Hayer to contact police.