Funeral Services Held For Cab Driver Gunned Down In West Philadelphia
By Todd Quinones
WEST PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Funeral services were held Wednesday night for a cab driver shot in West Philadelphia (see related story).
Police are hoping eyewitnesses and surveillance video will help them track down a suspect.
Many describe the cab driver as a hard working, devoted husband and father of a seven-year-old girl.
"We are terrified. Everybody is still in shock. Not everybody is doing very good," Hafiz Sarfaraz's cousin Usman Tariq said.
The funeral for Hafiz Sarfaraz drew hundreds. Many in the crowd were fellow cab drivers who say Sarfaraz's murder proves the dangers of the jobs.
Sarfaraz had dropped off a passenger at 63rd and Walnut Streets early Wednesday morning when police say someone -- possibly the passenger -- robbed Sarfaraz and shot him in the chest just after midnight.
Sarfaraz left home late Tuesday night, trying to make a little more money for his family. But the 33-year-old cab driver never came home.
"You have a seven-year-old baby that don't even know for the rest of her life she's not going to have a dad," cab driver Zaheer Muntaz said.
Police are hoping surveillance cameras in the area will lead to the suspect who gunned down the father for just a few dollars.
"He gave up everything he had on him and they still shot him. This is terrible," All-City Taxi manager Alex Friedman said.
"We really appreciate all these people coming out for him. We are like a family. They supported him," Tariq said.
Cab drivers argue they can be fined $300 for not picking someone up, even if the fare looks suspicious.
Fellow cabbies who came to Sarfaraz's funeral believe that has to change, and so on Friday they are planning to hold a vigil in front of the Philadelphia Parking Authority which oversees the cab business in the city.
