A Lyft passenger alleges that her driver tried to kidnap her, leading her to jump from the moving car and sustaining injuries to her head.
In a video posted on Aug. 12, TikToker Drea Nicole (@drenickii) appears on screen with visible injuries to her right undereye and eyebrow.
“Yesterday I almost died jumping out of a moving Lyft, because the driver was trying to kidnap me,” she claims. The video has reached over 4.5 million views as of Aug. 17.
Drea says she was catching a 30-minute Lyft ride from Yale University’s campus in New Haven, Conn., to her workplace at the Clinton Outlets and was ecstatic when she saw that she was assigned a female driver.
A suspicious phone call
When the driver pulled up, she says there were no red flags: The picture, license plate, and car model matched the app’s description. However, 10 minutes before the exit towards Drea’s workplace, she says that the Lyft driver got on the phone with a man and started speaking in a foreign language.
“At first, I didn’t think anything of it,” she says. “But she said something in English. ‘Dark skin, red sweater.’” Drea says she immediately recognized that the driver was giving her description to the man on the phone.
No left turns
She says the woman hung up the phone, ended the ride, and got back on the highway just as she was about to exit.
“I asked her, ‘What are you doing?’” she says. “She told me to ‘Shut up.’ She didn’t have to tell me nothing else.” Drea says she jumped from the moving Lyft, fearing that she was going to be sex trafficked.
“It hurt so bad I thought I was going to die,” she says. “It felt like I was in a movie. I keep replaying the scenario in my head.”
Drea says she walked to a nearby plaza to call the police.
@drenickii My face may heal but the damage is already done. 4 bruises on my body did not heal, they turned into scars, and im the one that has to deal with the aftermath from this situation. I love you Jehovah God, you’re always by my side. I am traumatized, i am injured physically and emotionally. My medicall bills are up to $16000, ambulance also charged me $1,200 for transporting me to Yale Hospital. My insurance did not pay. I made it back home to see my family because GOD HAD ME COVERED but what if i wasnt able to escape? Then what? Everyone be safe out here PLEASE! To all my beautiful girls and even gents be careful being that lyft and uber is not safe especially since we’re living in the last days! #lyft #uber #incident #fypage #fypシ゚viral ♬ original sound – Drea Nicole 🇦🇴
In the on-screen text at the end of the TikTok, she claims that she has been charged over $16,000 in medical bills following the incident and that her insurance isn’t covering it all. Drea opened a GoFundMe to cover the difference but took down the profile shortly after.
Drea also posted a screenshot of the alleged driver’s Lyft profile.
Viewers encourage Drea to seek legal support
“Contact a lawyer. Lyft should be responsible for their drivers,” one suggests. In a reply, Drea claims, “According to my lawyers, Lyft isn’t responding to any of their emails and letters.”
This is not the first time Lyft has been at the center of controversy surrounding the safety of riders. Between 2017 and 2019, Lyft reported over 4,000 assault cases. In 2019, 19 women filed a lawsuit against the company, claiming that Lyft did not take their reports seriously or have adequate safety measures in place. The Daily Dot reached out to Lyft via email for further comment.
Other viewers share similar scary experiences using ride-share services.
“A Similar thing happened to me. It’s very scary. Be careful, and I’m glad you’re OK,” one writes.
“This is so scary thais happened to my mother from Lift too they was taking her to Boston but she wanted to go to her sister that lifes in Gilford Ct [sic],” another says.
“Omg I live in CT and I had a similar experience and the guy drove past my house and wasn’t going to stop I hopped out of the car and ran to my neighbors house,” a third adds.
The Daily Dot reached out to Drea via Instagram direct message for further comment.
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