An Uber driver residing in Hialeah appeared in court today and faces serious charges of kidnapping, assault and indecent assault related to an incident that occurred last month.
“Sir, he was arrested for kidnapping, physical assault and for indecently exposing himself. I will appoint a court-appointed lawyer to represent him,” the judge told him on Wednesday.
The charges against Wilder Ariel Sosa Olivero allegedly arose during a passenger trip that took place on the night of February 22.
Sergeant Jose Torres, spokesman for the Hialeah Police Department, says the accused “picked up his 27-year-old victim and, as he was driving through town, on his way home, he gave him various sexual advances”.
It all started with an allusion to a piercing that the passenger had.
“He started saying that he also had the same spot and that’s when the subject exposes himself and shows her private parts. He touches her leg sexually, and she is offended, surprised, and immediately says: “Are you where are you going? and he said, “Let’s go to my place,” the police spokesman said.
According to the authorities’ report, the driver took the passenger to where he lives, presumably an apartment building where he told her to get out of the car and go up with him to the third floor. But, the passenger reacted.
“And he was like, ‘Take me home,’ and then she was like, ‘My friend is currently tracking my location through the app to see where I am and I want you to take me home,'” he added. said, defended the victim.
The Uber app has a tracking feature called “RideCheck”, with which the company detects if a ride leaves the planned route or stops along the way, after which the rider receives a verification message.
So far, Uber has not confirmed whether the passenger received this notification.
In the event of a situation similar to that experienced by the passenger, the Uber app offers shortcuts to call 911 or the company security line.
In a statement, an Uber spokesperson said: “We are outraged by what this passenger has experienced during her trip. This type of behavior is not tolerated on the Uber platform and driver access to the app has been removed. We are ready to assist law enforcement in their investigation.”