The driver ripped off a passenger he picked up from Pudong International Airport on the afternoon of February 13.

Law enforcers catch the driver the next day.

A taxi driver and the company that employed him have been punished following a passenger's complaint about being cheated on a fare.

On February 14, the passenger posted a complaint online that he was charged 367 yuan (US$52) by a taxi driver who took him from Pudong International Airport to Songnan Town in Baoshan District the previous afternoon. The distance covered should be about 60 kilometers, and normally such a trip would cost only 170 yuan.

When the passenger questioned the driver after being shown the price, the driver allegedly told him that taxis in Shanghai had raised their prices due to the novel coronavirus outbreak.

Moreover, the passenger found that his receipt indicated that he took the taxi at 10:20pm, when in fact the ride took place at around 4pm.

Law enforcers with the city’s transportation commission started an investigation and quickly caught the driver, a man surnamed Ding, at the Pudong airport.

From Ding’s car, inspectors say they found a small ticket printer and a device for tampering with his taxi meter. Ding allegedly confessed to cheating the passenger from the previous day.

Ding was made to compensate the passenger with 600 yuan.

The law enforcers also found that Ding has no taxi driver certificate, and for this offense he was fined 2,000 yuan. Yinjian, the taxi company which hired him, was fined 5,000 yuan.

Law enforcers said they have given a severe warning to the taxi company and required the driver to be fired.