Garfield Richards apparently had more problems than a busted taillight early this morning.

In addition to running an illegal cab service and having an unregistered car, the 34-year-old Bronx man was wanted by the New York City Police Department on a drug sale charge, police said.

So, when Westchester County police tried to pull him over on the Saw Mill Parkway in Yonkers about 2 a.m. today, the cabbie took off.

The chase went from the Saw Mill to the Cross County Parkway to the Bronx River Parkway.

All the while, a poor fare in the back seat who had hired Richards to take him to the Bronx was begging for the driver to stop.

Eventually Richards did stop - abruptly - at 241st Street and DeReimer Avenue.

The county cruiser in pursuit drove into the back of a Yonkers police car that was also on the chase.

The frightened fare jumped out and the runaway cabbie drove off again.

"The passenger gave us a statement," county police Lt. Jeffrey Hunt said. "He mentioned that he was pleading for the driver to stop."

The NYPD eventually cornered the cabbie at 233rd Street and the Bronx River Parkway at 2:30 a.m.

Richards was arrested on felony charges of assault and fleeing from police, as well as misdemeanor charges of reckless endangerment and driving with a suspended registration.

He is due in Yonkers City Court today.

Eventually he will be turned over to the NYPD to face the drug charge.

Details about the minor injuries suffered by police were not immediately available.

One of the cops, county police Officer Anthony Cucinell, was released after treatment at Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla.
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