OC Uber Driver Accused of Raping Passenger

A 52-year-old man made his first court appearance today on charges of raping a customer he met as an Uber driver.

The alleged victim, a 21-year-old woman, called the Uber ride-hailing service the evening of Oct. 24, and Omar Mahmoud Mousa of Anaheim, who was working for the service, picked her up from a motel in Anaheim, according to Roxi Fyad of the Orange County District Attorney's Office.

Mousa took the woman and her friend to a bar in Fullerton and told them to call him directly instead of Uber so he could give them a ride back, Fyad said.

Mousa drove them back early Oct. 25 and walked with them into their motel, Fyad said.

The alleged victim's friend passed out, she said. The alleged victim told police later that day that Mousa raped her and sexually assaulted her while she was intoxicated, according to Fyad.

The woman allegedly told the defendant to stop several times and eventually pushed him away, prompting him to leave.

Mousa was charged Jan. 25 with forcible rape, forcible oral copulation and sexually assaulting the alleged victim with his fingers, all felonies. When investigators attempted to contact the defendant to arrest him they learned he was in Israel and waited until he returned March 7 to take him into custody, Deputy District Attorney Rick Zimmer said.

Mousa, who was being held on $100,000 bail, could face up to 24 years in prison if convicted at trial, Fyad said. His arraignment today was rescheduled for April 8.

Uber issued a statement saying the company "has a zero-tolerance policy for violent behavior, and our thoughts are with the victim of this atrocious crime. We immediately blocked this individual's access to the Uber platform upon learning of this incident and actively assisted law enforcement in their investigation."

City News Service