WASHINGTON – A D.C. lady is warning rideshare passengers to watch out after what she described as a “terrifyingly close call” Sunday evening.
“I called the Uber, and it was four minutes away.” Lisa P. Cohen recalled, explaining that she’d simply attended a play at Arena Stage in Southwest earlier than issues took a flip for the worst.
According to the police report, the Uber driver’s “strange comments and attempts at going the wrong way caused [Cohen] to feel unsafe.”
“The driver started complimenting me and describing what I had on,” she informed FOX 5 Wednesday.
Cohen additionally stated that at one level throughout the trip, simply as they have been passing the Kennedy Center, a van pulled up alongside the Uber.
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“They’re communicating,” she stated of the drivers. “Then he rolls the window down, and he says, ‘I know, I got this. I got this.’”
Cohen had had sufficient. The police report states she “attempted to exit the vehicle, but the child locks prevented her from leaving from both sides of the back seat.”
“I jumped over the front seat,” she defined, including that she was capable of escape via the passenger aspect entrance door. “You can’t ask a person who’s trying to abduct you to help you. You gotta help yourself.”
Police didn’t use the phrase “abduct” of their incident report. Instead, the report classifies the offense as “threats to do bodily harm.”
Uber despatched FOX 5 a press release, saying, “The details of this rider’s experience are deeply unsettling, and we have been in touch with her. We removed the driver’s access to the Uber platform while we investigate, and we stand ready to support law enforcement with their investigation.”
Security expert Derrick Parks, the president and CEO of Metropolitan Protective Services, defined what others can do in the event that they discover themselves in an analogous scenario.
He suggests having an escape plan, and letting a relative know you’re taking an Uber. He additionally recommends riders ought to attempt to sit behind the driving force as a substitute of on the opposite aspect of the automobile, and he stated to hold one thing that may break a window if needed.
Uber’s app does have an emergency button that can be utilized to name 911.
Parks additionally suggested riders to verify an Uber’s doorways and home windows are unlocked earlier than they even get into the automobile.
“Prior to you getting into the car, you check for those small things,” Parks stated. “You know, ‘do you mind if you roll down the window.’ Check both sides of the door to make sure it’s working properly.”
D.C. Police stated the incident involving Cohen is an ongoing investigation, and to this point, no arrests have been made.