Rideshare Driver Kidnapped at Gunpoint, Drove From Texas to Florida: FBI

A man in Texas was arrested, accused of kidnapping a rideshare driver, holding him at gunpoint, and forcing the driver to drive to Miami, the FBI says.

According to a criminal complaint, the FBI named the suspect Miguel Alejandro Pastran Hernandez, 23, and said that he ordered a car through a rideshare service on the evening of August 16 in Arlington, Texas, where he requested to be driven to a gas station that was closed, before threatening the driver, whose identity has not been disclosed.

Pastran Hernandez has been charged with kidnapping, carjacking, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of Florida.

The criminal complaint alleged that Pastran Hernandez told the driver he would tie them up in the backseat, but they requested to drive.

When initially held at gunpoint at the gas station, the driver offered to give Pastran Hernandez the possessions in their car, but the suspect insisted they drive across states, according to the complaint as obtained by NBCMiami.

According to the complaint, while on the way to Florida, the suspect found that the victim had an unloaded gun and ammunition in the car and took it.

The complaint said that Pastran Hernandez had told the driver he planned to kidnap another victim and hold them for a $3 million ransom, as reported by NBCMiami.

The driver and suspect reportedly arrived in Miami on August 18, where he then provided the driver with further directions to go to Miami Beach. On August 19, the suspect allegedly told the driver to drive to a store for supplies for the second kidnapping.

The complaint states that when Pastran Hernandez was in the Dollar General in Hialeah buying supplies for the kidnapping, the driver hid in the bathroom and then fled.

Pastran Hernandez was later arrested in Hollywood. He is accused of attempting to flee from law enforcement, and police say he was found in possession of a bag containing a loaded firearm.

He was detained on three felony charges after an appearance in Miami federal court on August 20, and his pre-trial detention hearing is scheduled for August 26.

He is also scheduled for an arraignment hearing on September 3.

According to the United States Government Accountability Office’s report on ridesharing and taxi safety, from 2016 to 2020 there were a total of 47,597 non-fatal violent victimization incidents involving taxi drivers.

Newsweek reached out to the United States Attorney’s Office of Southern District of Florida for comment via email.

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