Crime & Safety
Police Arrest Man Accused of Posing As Uber Driver to Kidnap and Rape a Woman
Los Angeles police believe they have the man who kidnapped and attacked a woman posing as an Uber Driver in Westlake.
LOS ANGELES, CA A man who allegedly posed as an Uber driver, lured a woman into his SUV in the Westlake District then choked and sexually assaulted her was in custody today.
Dartanyun Smith, 39, of Los Angeles, was arrested Saturday morning at a South Los Angeles residence, Los Angeles Police Department Chief Charlie Beck said.
"Every violent incident is tragic, not a statistic but a person," said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. "Today, we know the city, and hopefully she can rest easier knowing that that assailant is now behind bars.”
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Smith was booked on suspicion of kidnapping and rape stemming from the April 3 attack. He is being held in lieu of $1 million bail.
Investigators from the LAPD's Robbery-Homicide Division followed leads that included DNA evidence to make the arrest, Beck said at a news conference with Garcetti. Authorities said Smith has an "extensive" criminal record that included doing time in prison for robbery.
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Officers were dispatched about 3:35 a.m. April 3 to the 1300 block of Ingraham Street in response to a report of a woman screaming. They found a man and a woman in the rear of a dark-colored SUV, which was parked at the curb, police said.
Responding officers could see the assault in progress, and officers tried to get into the vehicle, which was locked, and ultimately opened fire at the suspect, who was not struck and drove off. The woman managed to escape a few blocks away, police said.
Beck said the suspect choked the woman to unconsciousness at least three times when she was in the SUV, but she valiantly fought back against her attacker.
Police said the woman had apparently called for an Uber driver and was waiting for the ride when the suspect pulled alongside her and asked if she was waiting for Uber. He then convinced her that he was the Uber driver, and the woman got into the vehicle, police said.
Beck said that when the attack began, the woman screamed so loud that neighbors heard the commotion and called police.
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City News Service Patch staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.
