Man charged with armed kidnapping of rideshare driver he forced to drive from Texas to Florida, federal prosecutors say
By Amanda Musa, CNN
(CNN) — A Texas man is accused of kidnapping a ride share driver at gunpoint and forcing them to drive more than 1,000 miles to Miami, the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida said in a news release this week.
Miguel Alejandro Pastran Hernandez, 23, is charged with one count of kidnapping, one count of carjacking with the intent to cause death and serious bodily harm, and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, according to a criminal complaint filed Tuesday.
The complaint doesn’t identify the victim as a driver for Lyft but in a statement to CNN, the rideshare company said, “We have reached out to the driver to offer our support, permanently banned the rider’s account from the Lyft platform, and are assisting law enforcement with their investigation,” the statement continued.
The terrifying experience began on Friday, August 16, around 10:30 p.m., in Arlington, Texas, when Pastran Hernandez ordered a ride using a rideshare application, prosecutors allege.
The driver, who is not named in the complaint, arrived at the ride location where Pastran Hernandez pulled out a gun, according to an affidavit from an FBI agent in support of the criminal complaint.
The victim could hear Pastran Hernandez loading the chamber of the firearm, the complaint states. Pastran Hernandez reportedly told the driver he had other firearms in a suitcase he brought with him.
The defendant threatened to tie up the driver and stuff him in the trunk, the complaint states. But the victim begged to be allowed to drive hoping to find an opportunity to escape. In response, Pastran Hernandez ordered the driver to take him to Florida, the complaint explains.
Arlington is located in northeast Texas between Dallas and Fort Worth. The drive from Arlington to Miami is approximately 1,300 miles long.
During the trip, Pastran Hernandez also discovered the driver had their own firearm and ammunition in the car and he kept it in his possession for the remainder of the trip, according to the complaint.
The driver told officials they followed the man’s orders because they did not feel in control of the vehicle, according to the complaint.
The driver continued to drive to Florida where the pair arrived on Saturday night, officials said.
Plans for a second kidnapping?
“When they arrived in South Florida, Pastran Hernandez discussed his plan to kidnap another victim for ransom,” the news release said.
The driver remained in Pastran Hernandez’s custody until Monday, August 19, and was then ordered to drive to a store in Hialeah to buy supplies for the second kidnapping, officials said.
“While at the store, the victim fled from Pastran Hernandez who was later arrested and found in possession of a bag containing a loaded firearm,” the news release said.
According to an affidavit from an FBI agent supporting the complaint, Pastran Hernandez admitted to law enforcement that he kidnapped the victim at gunpoint, taking his firearm and making him drive to Florida.
An attorney for Pastran Hernandez did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment. Federal prosecutors said they could not comment further on Pastran Hernandez’s motive or whether he knew anyone in Miami.
In the statement to CNN Friday, a Lyft spokesperson said the behavior described in this case “is reprehensible and has no place in the Lyft community or anywhere in society.”
Safety is fundamental to Lyft, the spokesperson added.
Lyft provides “proactive safety support” for drivers, according to the company’s website, including monitoring rides for unusual activity, like long stops or route deviations.
“If we notice anything off about your ride, we’ll contact you to see if you need help,” the driver safety support page states.
In recent years, a number of rideshare drivers have been killed while on the job.
A former Afghan interpreter who immigrated with his family to America in 2021 was shot and killed while working a shift in Washington, DC, last year. Earlier this year, a former Atlanta police officer was arrested on suspicion of fatally shooting a Lyft driver he believed was trying to kidnap him.
Pastran Hernandez is being held in a Miami federal prison, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons’ inmate locator.
A pre-trial detention hearing is scheduled for Monday, according to the news release. An arraignment hearing is scheduled for September 3.
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