Not every time when ridesharing drivers are going to give you free candies and free water. Some of them are evil, might kidnap you, and even stalk you.
Such has been the habit of 46-year-old Wadson Desir, a Lyft driver in Florida, who authorities reported kept a passenger inside and even stalked her right after.
Desir refused to drive his passenger to her home. The woman booked a Lyft to drive her home from her work at a Starbucks store in Homestead, a tiny city in Florida. She was able to book the ride since her Starbucks workplace is giving free rides for their workers as part of a collaboration.
At some point during the ride, she realized that the driver was not following directions toward her residence.
When she notified her driver that he was going the wrong way, this looked like a scene in action movies when she said Desir just “laughed” and stated he made a “wrong turn.”
That was when she had already panicked, telling detectives she was afraid during the driver’s arrest, even phoning her boyfriend to tell him to monitor her location.
A rideshare driver was arrested after investigators say he kept a passenger in his car, initially did not take her home, and then later stalked her.
When they arrived in her area, the driver demanded that the victim give him her phone. She tried going out and forcing him out of the car, but the vehicle was locked, so she gave up her phone after all.
The driver took her number. She later came out of the car without her phone.
Days after, Desir appeared at her workplace, like a friend, and gave her her phone.
Desir is now facing charges of false imprisonment and stalking. He has already been arrested.
Not only are drivers for ridesharing platforms yielding to this habit, but even regular cab drivers who are intentionally saying they are lost on the road so the taxi fare could add up, or if they plan to do something unscrupulous.
Lyft has done its part, though. The lady was saying in her police report that she had been receiving notifications from Lyft asking her to inform the company if she was feeling unsafe.
The platform is also loud when it comes to ensuring its passengers are safe. On the official Help page of Lyft, passengers must be at least 18 years old to get an account on the app.
Moreover, Lyft has a strict “No Weapons” policy for both drivers and passengers. Recording devices while on the road are also strictly prohibited.
“Since Lyft launched in 2012, we have worked hard to design policies and features that help protect our community, from driver background checks to our 24/7 Safety team. We want to share our approach to arbitration and confidentiality in connection with the national issue of sexual harassment and sexual assault,” Lyft added.
For the other policies on keeping Lyft passengers safe, go to this page.