Uber Driver in India Accused of Raping, Beating Female Passenger, Indian police have opened a rape investigation after a woman reported that she was sexually assaulted by the driver of a cab she hired through Uber, the U.S. online taxi service that has launched an aggressive international expansion. The 26-year-old woman reported that she had been sexually assaulted and beaten when she got a ride with the Uber driver after a social event late on Friday in Vasant Vihar, south Delhi.
Police have deployed four teams of five members each to trace the 32-year-old driver, identified as Shiv Kumar Yadav, who has switched off his mobile phone since the incident to avoid being traced. The driver is accused of dropping the woman home after attacking her and warning her not to inform the authorities. "Our first priority is to arrest the driver and collect the evidence in a scientific manner, so that the victim can get timely justice," Madhur Verma, deputy commissioner with the Delhi police, told Reuters.
San Francisco-based Uber said in a statement on Sunday it had suspended the driver following the allegations, in line with company policy, and would assist the police. Uber has faced critical news coverage over its driver screening in the United States, and has apologized for comments by an executive who suggested "digging up dirt" on journalists investigating the firm.
