A South Florida rideshare driver is accused of picking up a tourist he wasn't assigned to in Miami Beach before bringing her to a motel against her own will.
The victim says Danny Maurad-Avecillas, 49, was posing as her Uber driver and instead of taking her to her Airbnb, she woke up in a motel without her clothes on back on Jan. 12.
She claims that he not only used her credit card to pay for the motel and to fill up his car with gas, but also sexually assaulted her.
The victim spoke during his court Maurad-Avecillas' first court appearance.
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"I have bodily injuries. I don’t know what they did to me but like I have bruises," the victim explained over Zoom. "Right now, I’m going through like knee injuries that I might need a surgery for."
Maurad-Avecillas was arrested Friday and is facing charges including credit card fraud, but the judge says there's also probable cause for kidnapping.
He's been ordered to have no contact with the victim, and Miami Police say this may not be the first time, as he's being investigated for allegedly targeting other women waiting for their ride-share.
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The judge described a shocking admission to detectives in court.
"He told the detectives he does drive Uber and on more than one occasion, he’s placed incoherent females into his vehicle and transported them to a motel where he removes their belongings for safe keeping," the judge said.
Uber reacted to the accusations in a statement.
"There are no words to describe this sickening behavior. We removed the driver’s access as soon as this was reported to us and are supporting law enforcement with their investigation," an Uber spokesperson stated.
