ROLLING MEADOWS, Ill. (AP/WSVN) — Authorities say a former Lyft ride-hailing driver is accused of twice sexually assaulting a female passenger in suburban Chicago.
The Chicago Tribune reports 34-year-old Alexander Sowa of Wheeling is due in court Tuesday on sexual assault and kidnapping charges.
Police in Mount Prospect say they responded to a parking garage to take a sexual assault report, Thursday. The woman told police that she requested a Lyft to take her to another location.
Police said instead, Sowa took her to a place nearby and sexually assaulted her. Investigators said Sowa then took her to another location where he sexually assaulted her again.
Police say the passenger escaped Sowa’s vehicle and called authorities. Mount Prospect police say they arrested Sowa on Thursday, the same day as the attack.
Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Tandra Simonton says Sowa is being held in lieu of $10,000 bail after appearing Saturday before a judge who ordered Sowa participate in electronic monitoring.
Lyft said Sowa was permanently banned from its community and that it reached out to the woman “to express our support.”
It wasn’t immediately clear if Sowa had an attorney.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.