Ticket controller beaten up in Budapest – Aggressive passenger faces up to 7 years in prison

 A violent passenger attacked a ticket controller in Budapest. The offender was travelling without a ticket, and instead of paying the surcharge, he started harassing the controller.

It was just like any other day, people getting on and off the trains to get to work or go home. However, when a 28-year-old man got on a train at Nyugati Railway Station without a ticket, things took an ugly and unexpected turn.

The man allegedly wanted to buy his ticket on the train from the ticket controller, which is still possible on many routes all over the country, but for that particular train, you could only buy tickets in advance. The ticket controller informed the passenger that if he has no ticket, he has to either pay the surcharge or get off the train. The passenger immediately got mad and started shouting and attacking the ticket controller, hvg.hu reports. The man started screaming and pushing at first. Then, both he and the controller got off the train at Zugló Railway Station, District XIV.

As the offender was uncooperative, the ticket controller called the police. Then, the defendant shouted at him and started punching him in the face and kicking him on the thighs and ankles several times. He even managed to break the man’s bone.

The incident happened on 15 April 2018 in District XIV, Budapest.

The XIV. and XVI. District Prosecutor’s Office has charged the offender with violence and grievous bodily harm against a man on public duty. Without a trial, the court sentenced the offender to two years in prison, suspended for four years. The district prosecutor’s office requested a hearing against this order because, in its view, the offences and their circumstances warrant a longer sentence to be served. The offences are punishable by one to seven and a half years in prison under the law.

Source: www.hvg.hu