News broke via the Cleveland Park email list today that a driver for the Uber sedan service allegedly raped a customer in Cleveland Park early Friday morning—-and the crime was caught on tape.
Officer Hugh Carew, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Police Department, confirms that police are investigating a forcible sexual abuse case in Cleveland Park that occurred on Dec. 8. According to the incident report, the crime occurred between 2:30 a.m. and 3:30 a.m. on 36th Street NW. No arrests have been made, Carew says.
According to the victim’s statement to police, the suspect came up from behind, pushing her against a garage door. The victim hit her head on the ground, before the suspect raped her. Notably, the incident report does not mention Uber.
The incident report conflicts with some information presented in the email list post, notably the day it happened. The post says the rape happened on a Friday, while the report says it happened on a Saturday.
In an emailed statement, Uber D.C. General Manager Rachel Holt says the company is working with police on the case. “We cannot comment on an ongoing criminal matter, but it is our policy to deactivate the driver account of someone if we receive information that they have been suspected of committing a crime,” Holt writes.
A spokesman for Uber declined to say whether the driver in question had been suspended.
Here’s the Cleveland Park email list note:
A woman’s teen-age daughter used Uber car serve to return to her home
last night after a late evening. The car drove up the family’s driveway
around 3:30 AM. The girl walked to the door but the driver called her
back. When she went back, the driver struck her on the head and raped
her.The family has a security camera in the driveway. The camera showed the
driver carrying the girl’s limp body back to the house. She is now at
home, trying to rest. The entire family is of course very shaken.Because of the cameras, they know who did it. As of this morning, he had
not yet been arrested, but many officers are involved and he will be.
This post’s headline has been updated.
Sedan picture via Shutterstock