Felony charges were filed Tuesday against a man who allegedly carjacked a lime green Toyota Prius taxi last Friday near LAX, forced the cabbie to smoke a drug-laced cigarette and then led police on a mostly slow-speed chase through South Los Angeles and surrounding communities.
Derrick Bogar, 36, is also charged with robbing three other cab drivers — two of whom were allegedly carjacked — at or near Los Angeles International Airport last week.
Bogar pleaded not guilty to four counts of first-degree robbery of a transit operator, three counts of carjacking, two counts of administering a drug and one count each of kidnapping to commit another crime, second-degree robbery and fleeing a pursuing peace officer's motor vehicle while driving recklessly.
Bogar allegedly carjacked and robbed a cabbie who was parked at a hotel at 9620 Airport Blvd. about 1:30 p.m. Friday, then forced the man to smoke a drug-laced cigarette before the driver escaped.
As the suspect wound through South Los Angeles, Inglewood, Hawthorne and unincorporated county areas in the lime green Prius, he slowed at times and appeared to hand money to at least two bystanders.
He also drove onto train tracks as a Metro train passed. The taxi avoided hitting the train, which stopped in front of the cab.
Some onlookers cheered and captured images of the green Bell Cab and its driver on their cellphones.
He was arrested about 3:25 p.m. after a police SUV did a PIT maneuver that sent the Prius into a spin before it was pinned by three other police SUVs.
Bogar also allegedly carjacked two cabs parked at LAX last Tuesday and Wednesday and robbed the drivers. The criminal complaint alleges that he also administered a drug to one of them.
He also is accused of robbing a cab driver about 1 a.m. last Tuesday at a hotel near LAX, according to the District Attorney's Office.
Bogar — whose bail was set at $1.25 million — is due back in court April 28, when a date is scheduled to be set for a hearing to determine if there is enough evidence to require him to stand trial.
