NEW YORK—A man who drove for Uber in New York City pleaded guilty Monday to abducting a woman who fell asleep inside his vehicle and then leaving her on the side of a highway in Connecticut.
Harbir Parmar, 25, of Queens, faces up to life in prison after pleading guilty in U.S. District Court to counts of kidnapping and wire fraud.
The kidnapping happened in February 2018 after the woman requested a ride from Manhattan to her home in White Plains, New York, about an hour away.
Uber driver pleads guilty to kidnapping sleeping passenger https://t.co/OL6MS7j2tN pic.twitter.com/U0EFdTeyTi
— RAY (@raybae689) March 11, 2019
Prosecutors said Parmar changed her destination to an address in Boston, Massachusetts, after she fell asleep. The woman told authorities she awoke to Parmar groping her in the back seat, reaching under her shirt.
The woman reached for her phone, according to federal court papers, but Parmar took the device from her and continued driving. He refused the woman’s request to take her to a police station and eventually left her on the side of Interstate 95 in Branford, Connecticut, about an hour’s drive from her home.
Authorities said the woman memorized Parmar’s license plate and called a cab from a nearby convenience store.
Queens Uber driver pleads guilty to kidnapping sleeping passenger https://t.co/MWf3LpNCkl pic.twitter.com/HVutLv5z3f
— NYC Informer (@newyorkcityinfo) March 11, 2019
Uber told The Associated Press last year that it blocked Parmar from using its app after the kidnapping. The company said it fully cooperated with law enforcement.
Parmar also pleaded guilty to wire fraud for overcharging riders by inputting false information about their destinations. Prosecutors said the fraud amounted to thousands of dollars.
Parmar is scheduled to be sentenced June 24.
Phony Uber Driver With Unconscious Woman in Car Arrested
An Alabama man is charged with kidnapping by pretending to be an Uber driver to pick up a university student who was found unconscious in the back seat of his car, police said Monday.
Investigators found multiple images on the driver’s cellphone of at least one other college-aged woman who appeared unconscious in the vehicle, said Capt. Gary Hood, commander of the Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit.
Man, 61, posing as Uber driver ‘kidnapped a college student and had photos of unconscious women on his phone’ https://t.co/a9z1eO3VXi
— Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) March 11, 2019
Tommy Beard, 61, was released on bond Friday on a first-degree kidnapping charge, court records show. The records don’t list an attorney for him, and calls to a phone number listed for him in those records went unanswered.
“It’s alarming, absolutely,” Hood said.
“He had a fake Uber sign that he bought online, and he admitted that he wasn’t an Uber driver,” Hood added.
Tommy Beard did not answer questions as Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s deputies toon him to jail Friday. He’s now charged with kidnapping after authorities accused him of posing as an Uber driver and photographing unconscious females in his backseat. pic.twitter.com/b3BvxBQdmR
— Kelvin Reynolds (@Fox6Kelvin) March 8, 2019
Various Uber decals and lights for vehicles—many featuring the Uber logo—were available Monday on Amazon.com. A representative for Amazon said late Monday she was looking into the matter.
Uber LED signs were also available Monday through Walmart.com. Walmart representatives didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Hood said Beard picked up the 22-year-old woman near the University of Alabama campus and drove her about 7 miles away. A deputy noticed a car alongside the road and stopped to investigate, which led to his arrest March 2. Court records say the woman remembers being at a bar in Tuscaloosa but nothing else until the deputy woke her up.
The Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit arrested 61-year-old Tommy Beard today. Investigators say he’s charged with kidnapping after he posed as an Uber driver and took pictures of college-aged females in the back of his car. pic.twitter.com/kZ8mY14yT8
— Chip Scarborough (@ChipWVTM13) March 8, 2019
A loaded handgun was found in Beard’s vehicle, but he had a legal permit for it, Hood said.
As he was taken to jail, Beard wore a T-shirt that said, “So when’s this ‘old enough to know better’ supposed to kick in?” video from The Tuscaloosa News shows.
Hood advises Uber users to arrange their rides through the company’s app, since it has certain safety features built-in. Users are given the driver’s name and a description of the vehicle before they get inside, for instance.
