Even at the best of times, it’s not easy to be a driver for a ride-sharing platform like Uber or Lyft.
That became abundantly clear in one driver’s tearful video that found him on the brink of homelessness, but compensation struggles like what he went through don’t even touch on what it’s like to deal with your passengers.
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As anyone in the service industry knows, it’s hard not to feel like some customers woke up that day and decided they were going to make your life miserable. But in a pandemic, the usual lack of consideration we experience from people like that can be potentially deadly.
And that’s why two women who harassed an Uber driver in a viral clip are now facing some serious charges.
On March 7, A San Francisco Uber driver named Subhakar Khadka picked up three women before eventually pulling over.
As KPIX 5 reported , he had done so tell them to keep their face masks on.
By the time the clip began — be advised that it contains explicit language — the situation had escalated to the point that he had ended the ride early and told them to leave his car.
Soon after the clip began, the woman now identified as 24-year-old Arna Kimiai ripped her mask off with an expletive and starts coughing in Khadka’s direction as shown here.
She then reached forward and grabbed his phone and when Khadka snatched it back, the woman who had since been identified as 24-year-old Malaysia King pulled down her own mask and joined Kimiai in arguing with him.
As the two women utter threats to beat Khadka up, Kimiai can be seen ripping his own mask off and throwing it at his windshield.
After the three women in the video left the car, one of them reportedly sprayed pepper spray through Khadka’s window.
As ABC7 reported , this left him with a persistent noxious odor in his car that made it impossible to continue working until it was cleaned.
Despite the fact that he couldn’t find a place willing to clean it for less than $250, however, Uber initially offered to provide him $20 to clean his car before increasing the offer to $40 and finally, $120.
However, a GoFundMe campaign in Khadka’s honor has not only made up the difference, but raised a total of $99,973 by the time of this writing.
As for his passengers, two of them are now facing similar charges in the week since the incident.
According to KPIX 5, King was arrested in Las Vegas on March 9 after her and a male companion allegedly tried to use a fraudulent ID to gain access to a bank account at a Bank of America branch.
After agreeing to return to San Francisco in connection with the Uber incident, she has been charged with assault with a caustic chemical, assault and battery, conspiracy, and violation of health and safety code.
As for Kimiai, she has since turned herself in to police and faces her own list of charges.
As with King, KPIX 5 reported that she has been charged with assault and battery, conspiracy, and a violation of health and safety code.
But while authorities seem to allege King’s responsibility for the pepper spray attack, Kimiai also faces a robbery charge that likely stems from her snatching Khadka’s phone.
She has posted a $75,000 bond pending a future court appearance.
h/t: KPIX 5
