A man in a white van beeped at a woman as she made her way down a city street and she filmed their encounter
A woman exacted revenge on a man who beeped and shouted at her while was out walking down a city street and potentially landing him a hefty fine.
Aneesa Bhabha, 25, was walking down Newport Road in Cardiff, when a man in a white van started beeping at her repeatedly, before opening his window, leaning out of his van and shouting at her.
She took out her phone and started recording the man and his vehicle as evidence of what had happened.
She decided to put the number plate of the van through an online check to check if the vehicle was taxed or not. When it said the vehicle was untaxed, she reported it via the UK Government.
The DVLA website lists the various level of fines he could face if the offence is proved. Using an untaxed vehicle on a public road could result in a £30 fine, plus one and a half times the outstanding vehicle tax. If that isn’t paid criminal proceedings can follow, which could be £1,000.
She posted a video, including the footage of the man shouted at her and screenshots detailing her revenge, on her Tiktok and Instagram accounts.
The video, titled “Got harassed in Cardiff but karma had my back”, has now reached seven million views, and Ms Bhabha said: “The response across shares and story reposts has been overwhelming.”
“So many women have come forward to share their own experiences, which really shows how common this is,” she said.
“I think the video resonated because this happens so often, but it is rarely spoken about in a way that actually leads to any kind of accountability.”
Ms Bhabha said: “Cat-calling also happens so quickly that by the time you have even processed what has happened, it is already over and too late.
“Trying to seek justice, whether that is within your community, through friend groups, or even through law enforcement, can be incredibly difficult,” she said. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation, sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here
Ms Bhabha said that recording the video, “allows you to take some form of action and be heard”.
“In terms of how this has changed how I will respond in the future, I think I will be more aware and quicker to take my phone out if something happens,” she said.
However, she has faced backlash online for her actions.
“Even with video evidence, including the more recent video I shared which has nearly 200,000 views with audio, I have received thousands of negative comments, threats, and abusive messages.
“People have told me to leave the country, accused me of faking the video, and called me awful names,” she said.
The marathon runner said: “As a result of speaking out, I have also had to make my Strava private to protect my safety, as I was concerned that people online might try to track my location.”
Social media users have now contacted her to help identify the man and Ms Bhabha plans to report it to the police.
“I hope that helps support their investigation and, ultimately, helps protect other women.”
Ms Bhabha said she will continue to speak out and support other women in sharing their experiences but said: “I do not think the responsibility should fall on women to change how we react.”
“We should be able to exist without being harassed”.




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