(CNN) — A Texas man is accused of kidnapping a ride-share driver at gunpoint and forcing him to drive more than 1,000 miles to Miami, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida said in a news release this week.
Miguel Alejandro Pastran Hernandez, 23, is charged with kidnapping, car theft with intent to cause death or serious bodily harm and possession of a firearm to commit a violent crime, according to a criminal complaint filed Tuesday.
The complaint does not identify the victim as a Lyft driver, but in a statement to CNN, the ride-sharing company said: “We have contacted the driver to offer our assistance, have permanently suspended the rider’s account from the Lyft platform, and are assisting law enforcement with their investigation,” the statement continued.
The horrific experience began around 10:30 p.m. on Friday, August 16, in Arlington, Texas, when Pastran Hernandez requested a ride through a ride-sharing app, prosecutors allege.
The driver, who is not named in the complaint, arrived at the scene, where Pastran Hernandez pulled out a gun, according to an affidavit filed by an FBI agent in support of the criminal complaint.
The victim heard Pastran Hernandez loading the chamber of the gun, the indictment states. Pastran Hernandez allegedly told the driver that he had other firearms in a suitcase that he had brought with him.
The defendant threatened to tie up the driver and stuff him in the trunk, the indictment says. But the victim begged to be allowed to drive, hoping to find a way to escape. In response, Pastran Hernandez ordered the driver to take him to Florida, the indictment says.
Arlington is located in northeast Texas between Dallas and Fort Worth. The drive from Arlington to Miami is about 1,300 miles.
During the trip, Pastran Hernandez also noticed that the driver had his own firearm and ammunition in the car and kept them with him for the remainder of the trip, the complaint states.
The driver told officers he followed the man’s instructions because he felt he was not in control of the vehicle, the complaint states.
The driver continued on to Florida, where the couple arrived Saturday evening, officials said.
Plans for a second kidnapping?
“When they arrived in SIn South Florida, Pastran Hernandez discussed his plan to kidnap another victim for ransom,” the press release said.
The driver remained in Pastran Hernandez’s custody until Monday, Aug. 19, and was then ordered to drive to a store in Hialeah to purchase supplies for the second kidnapping, officials said.
“While inside the store, the victim fled from Pastran Hernandez, who was later arrested and found to be carrying a bag containing a loaded firearm,” the press release said.
According to an FBI agent’s affidavit supporting the complaint, Pastran Hernandez admitted to authorities that he kidnapped the victim at gunpoint, took the gun and forced her to drive to Florida.
An attorney for Pastran Hernandez did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment. Federal prosecutors said they could not comment further on Pastran Hernandez’s motive or whether he knew anyone in Miami.
In a statement to CNN on Friday, a Lyft spokesperson said the conduct described in this case was “reprehensible and has no place in the Lyft community or anywhere else in society.”
Safety is of fundamental importance to Lyft, the spokesman added.
According to the company’s website, Lyft offers its drivers “proactive safety support,” including monitoring trips for unusual activity such as long stops or route deviations.
“If we notice anything unusual about your ride, we will contact you and ask if you need help,” the driver safety support page states.
In recent years, several rideshare drivers have been killed on the job.
A former Afghan interpreter who immigrated to America with his family in 2021 was shot and killed while on shift in Washington, DC, last year. Earlier this year, a former Atlanta police officer was arrested on suspicion of shooting a Lyft driver he believed was trying to kidnap him.
Pastran Hernandez is being held at a federal prison in Miami, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons’ inmate locator.
According to the press release, a detention hearing is scheduled for Monday, with arraignment scheduled for September 3.
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