Chauffeur kicked by businesswoman in London road rage attack

A chauffeur described being kicked and sworn at by a wealthy businesswoman following an alleged collision between their two vehicles at a set of traffic lights in London last November.

40-year-old company director, Maria Lemos, was found guilty of assault at the City of London Magistrates Court this week. 50-year-old chauffeur, Kenneth Oakley, described how Mrs Lemos had lashed out, kicking and swearing at him after she drove her Porsche Cayenne 4X4 into the back of his Mercedes Benz E-Class.

The chauffeur described how Mrs Lemos bumped into the back of his Mercedes when they stopped at traffic lights in London. Mr Oakley proceeded to get out of his car to assess the damage and talk to the driver of the other car, Mrs Lemos, however she quickly jumped back into her 4×4 after getting out of her vehicle and quickly dismissing she’d caused any damage.

At this point, Mr Oakley explained how the situation worsened as he stood in front of Mrs Lemos’s car door to stop her leaving, but she swung it closed anyway, hitting him on the arm, before kicking out at the chauffeur and shouting verbal abuse, and speeding off in her £55,000 vehicle.

The police tracked down Mrs Lemos and she was arrested at her family home in the affluent Marble Arch area of London later that night. The businesswoman attempted to defend her actions, saying she had lashed out in self defence as she was afraid she would fall victim to a carjacking attempt by Mr Oakley.

However the court found Mrs Lemos guilty of the assault and she was fined £600 and charged £300 costs, and ordered to pay £100 in compensation and £15 victim surcharge.