- E-hailing giant Uber is investigating an incident where a woman in Cape Town was sexually assaulted, robbed at gunpoint and driven around for hours, allegedly in one of their vehicles.
- The incident happened on Friday evening at around 21:25, Capt Aubrey Morwenyane, Bellville Police Station’s spokesperson confirmed earlier.
- “What has been described is completely unacceptable,” an Uber spokesperson said on Sunday.
E-hailing giant Uber is investigating an incident where a woman in Cape Town was sexually assaulted, robbed at gunpoint and driven around for hours, allegedly in one of their vehicles.
The incident happened on Friday evening at around 21:25, Capt Aubrey Morwenyane, Bellville Police Station’s spokesperson confirmed earlier.
“What has been described is completely unacceptable,” an Uber spokesperson said on Sunday.
“We offer our deepest sympathies to the victim as no one should ever have to experience such a tragedy. The safety of all riders and drivers using the Uber app is a top priority.”
The woman (21) requested an Uber from her workplace in Bellville on Friday evening. The driver instructed her to sit in the back seat.
“While on the road another male came from the boot of the vehicle and sat next to her. He then removed firearm and pointed it at her,” Morwenyane said.
“He demanded all her belongings which were laptop, cellphone and work scanner.”
The woman was then sexually assaulted by the robber.
The pair then forced the woman to call her family and ask for money.
When none was forthcoming, she was dropped off at the side of the road.
A case of robbery with a firearm and rape is being investigated, Morwenyane said.
Emre Uygen, chair of the Bellville Community Policing Forum, said the woman was dropped off in Kraaifontein.
“I condemn in the strongest possible terms the horrific incident that occurred yesterday, in which a young woman was robbed and sexually assaulted,” he said.
“We urge the Bellville SAPS detectives to work tirelessly and expeditiously to apprehend the suspects and bring them to justice.”
He called on the government to implement more safety measures for e-hailing passengers and drivers.
“We demand swift action to prevent such heinous crimes from occurring in the future.”
After the incident, reports on social media and by Uygen named two different e-hailing companies as the ones the woman used. Morwenyane, however, said it was an Uber.
