A French taxi driver who was accused of having stolen money and luggage from a senior British government minister was acquitted on Monday due to lack of evidence, a prosecutor said.
The 40-year-old driver, who was based in the southeastern city of Avignon, drove David Lammy and his wife more than 600 kilometres (370 miles) from Forli in northern Italy to the ski resort of Flaine in the French Alps on April 11.
But at the end of the journey, the "tone escalated" over how much the trip cost, Bonneville prosecutor Boris Duffau said in May.
The driver then left with his passengers' bags in the boot of his car.
"He dropped them off the next day at a municipal police station" but that was considered theft due to the length of time he had them in his possession, the magistrate said.
The driver accused Lammy in the media of refusing to pay for the journey and complained of violence.
In London, the foreign ministry denied that the minister refused to pay the fare -- said to be 1,550 euros ($1,787) -- and described the couple, who were on a private holiday, as "victims".
They had been in Italy to join Britain's head of state King Charles III on a state visit.
Both Lammy and the driver filed complaints but only the minister's was deemed substantial and the Frenchman was charged with "theft of cash and personal belongings".
The driver was acquitted because of a lack of proof, Duffau said.
Lammy was replaced by Yvette Cooper as foreign secretary in a September reshuffle and is now Britain's justice secretary and deputy prime minister.
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