AP scored an exclusive interview with a cabbie who acted as the getaway driver for Britain’s Prince Harry and his wife Meghan after they were trailed by photographers after a charity event in New York, thanks to a cross-Atlantic team of New York reporter Bobby Calvan, researcher Rhonda Shafner, radio reporter Julie Walker, New York video journalist David Martin, London reporter Danica Kirka and the London news team adding important context.
Calvan found taxi driver Sukhcharn Singh through some excellent sleuthing. TMZ had obtained a brief video clip of Meghan and Harry inside the cab, which they had hailed on the street after inexplicably abandoning their own vehicle. Calvan wrote down the cab’s medallion number, used public records to identify its owner, then with the help of Shafner, was able to get a phone number. When he reached Singh, Calvan and Walker recorded his account of the “chase,” which he described as not really a chase at all. Martin then got to Singh’s home for his first on-camera interview. Kirka and the London crew added important context to the story.
The AP had Singh first in all formats and was cited extensively. Many media organizations then also called for the cabbie. Several days later, some news organizations were still reaching out to the AP, looking for ways to get in touch with the cabbie.