Just a few days after the driver for a ride hail company was accused of taking a San Francisco passenger to a remote location and making unwanted sexual advances, another driver is being sought by police for kidnapping a rider and demanding her money
The San Francisco Police Department reports that the incident occurred at 5:20 Wednesday afternoon, when a 71-year-old female passenger hailed a shared ride offering from an as-yet-undisclosed transportation network company.
Police say that the victim "rode a ride sharing Pool and was the last passenger to be dropped off." That's when police say, the driver "stopped at a location blocks from the set drop off point and demanded more money from [the victim] before he would drive any further."
Riders who use ride-hail services like Lyft and Uber (neither of which have been confirmed by SFPD to be involved in the incident) typically pay for the fare through the company's application, using a stored credit card. As of publication time, police did not confirm if the driver was demanding the victim's cash or payment via some other platform.
The victim refused the driver's demands, police say. In response, the driver "locked the doors and began driving erratically." Eventually, he dropped her off near 40th Avenue and Balboa Street, which was "blocks from her destination." He then fled in his vehicle, police say.
As noted by commenters in Monday's report on the TNC driver who took a female passenger to a "secluded area" then made "made threats and unwanted advances," ride hail companies like the one for which this suspect works should have all the information necessary for police to track him down and question him regarding the incident. However, as of Thursday morning, police did not have any details on the suspect, nor had any arrests been made in the case.
Related: San Francisco Ride-Hail Driver Kidnaps Drunk Passenger