Indian-origin Uber driver charged with kidnapping woman passenger in US

New York - The driver kidnapped, terrorised, and assaulted the woman before dumping her on the side of an interstate.

An Indian-origin man working as Uber driver has been charged with kidnapping in a US court after he allegedly groped a female passenger and dropped her on a highway, several miles away from her destination.
Harbir Parmar, 24 of Queens is charged with one count of kidnapping, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison, and one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
According to the allegations in the complaint unsealed Tuesday, the woman booked a ride late night from Manhattan to her home in White Plains through the ride sharing company Uber on February 21, 2018.
The woman fell asleep in the vehicle and Parmar changed her destination in Uber's mobile application to an address in Boston, Massachusetts, several miles away from her destination, and proceeded to drive toward Massachusetts.
When the woman awoke, the vehicle was on the side of the road and Parmar was in the backseat of the vehicle with his hand under her shirt.
Parmar got back into the driver's seat and continued driving. He refused when the woman asked that she be taken to White Plains or to the police station. He instead dropped her off on the side of a highway in Connecticut. The woman went to a nearby convenience store where she sought assistance.
The following day, the woman called Uber to report the incident and found out that she was charged $1047.55 for a trip from New York to Massachusetts.
Prosecutors also allege that from December 2016 through February 2018, Parmar sent false information about the destinations of Uber's customers through the company's mobile application on at least 11 occasions.

He also sent false information about the application of a cleaning fee to be applied to the accounts of Uber's customers on at least three occasions.

In these instances, Uber customers filed complaints about being overcharged for their rides. These instances have resulted in over $3,600 in improper charges to the accounts of Uber's customers.

US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Geoffrey Berman said Parmar was hired to transport a woman from Manhattan to her home in White Plains.
"Instead, Parmar kidnapped, terrorised, and assaulted the woman before dumping her on the side of an interstate. No one - man or woman - should fear such an attack when they simply hire a car service."
Uber said in a statement that it has fully cooperated with law enforcement and will continue to support their investigation.
"What's been reported is horrible and something no person should go through. As soon as we became aware, we immediately removed this individual's access to the platform," the company said in the statement.
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William Sweeney said the woman utilised a ride sharing service trusting that her driver would provide a safe ride home.
"Instead Harbir Parmar made an outrageous choice, deciding to unlawfully take advantage of his passenger at a moment of vulnerability for his own selfish motives. This kind of behaviour should never be tolerated, and the FBI will continue to work tirelessly with our partners to bring justice to those who would shamelessly and illegally take advantage of others."
New York Police Commissioner James P O'Neill said the criminal acts outlined in the complaint are "reprehensible."
"This individual's behaviour goes far beyond ridesharing companies' efforts to revise their ethics codes and put stronger emphasis on background checks for their drivers," he said, adding that the charges are appalling, and such behaviour will never be tolerated.