Uber Driver Accused Of Raping Boston Passenger Held On $10K Bail

BOSTON, MA — Police arrested an Everett man accused of raping a woman after picking her up in his rideshare car in Boston.

Boston Police Sexual Assault Unit officers arrested Michael Squadrito, 40, of Everett on rape charges Tuesday, according to police.

A woman was using the ride sharing service to go home from downtown Boston, when the driver took her to some place in Dorchester and reportedly sexually assaulted the woman.

Squadrito pleaded not guilty Wednesday in Dorchester District Court and was held on $10,000 bail, according to the Suffolk DA's office.

“What’s been reported is deeply disturbing and our thoughts are with the rider during this difficult time. The driver’s access to the app has been removed and we will continue to cooperate with law enforcement," an Uber spokesperson said in a statement to Patch.

Squadrito was driving for Uber early Tuesday morning when he picked up a woman in her 20s, near Faneuil Hall in Boston. The woman reported that instead of taking her home he parked and sexually assaulted her in the car.

The woman said she was able to get away, call a family member, and then admit herself to Brigham & Women’s Hospital, where Boston Police Sexual Assault Unit detectives responded to interview her, according to the DA's office.

The woman was able to provide investigators with her phone, which identified Squadrito as her driver through the Uber app.

In an interview with Boston Police, Squadrito allegedly stated that the sexual contact was consensual and that data from a dashboard camerawould support that claim; a memory card he provided did not provide any such data or support.

He is scheduled to return to court Nov. 21.

This isn't the first time a ride-share company in the Boston area has had employees accused of sexually assaulting a passenger. Earlier this year Police arrested an Everett man accused of raping a drunk woman after picking her up in his rideshare car in Boston. Last year, Luis Baez, 34, of Boston was arraigned in Newton on three counts of rape. In a separate incident Kastriot Naksi, 46, of West Roxbury was accused of sexually assaulting and kidnapping a woman while driving for Uber in Quincy. A year before that, a Brockton Uber driver was accused.

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Hundreds of sexual assaults related to rideshare drivers have been reported since 2013, according to the Taxicab, Limousine and Paratransit advocacy group Who's Driving You.

The 2010 National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey data for Massachusetts residents surveyed was similar to the national data. Nearly 1 in 2 women and 1 in 4 men in Massachusetts have experienced sexual violence victimization other than rape. Nearly 1 in 3 women and 1 in 5 men in Massachusetts have experienced rape, physical violence and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lives. More than 1 in 7 women have experienced rape, according to, sexual violence coalition Jane Doe.

• One in five women and one in 16 men are sexually assaulted while in college. (National Sexual Violence Resource Center)
• About one in three women and one in six men in the United States have experienced some form of contact sexual violence during their lifetime. Nearly one in five women (18.3%) and one in 71 men (1.4%) in the United States have been raped at some time in their lives. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey.

If you're a victim of a sexual assault that has or has not been reported to police and would feel more comfortable seeking confidential advice from a non-law enforcement agency or representative, the Boston Police Department advises and encourages you to call the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center (BARCC) at 1 (800) 841-8371. BARCC provides free and confidential counseling, case management, legal and medical advocacy services to survivors in the greater Boston area. To learn more about BARCC, please click on www.barcc.org.

Previously on Patch:

• Uber Driver Arrested for Alleged Sexual Assault of Passenger
• Uber Driver Charged With Sex Assault of Passenger
• Uber Driver Rape, Gulf Gas Station Robbery Indictments: DA
• Uber Driver Nearly Crashes Into Dunkin Donuts In Front Of Chief: Police
• Boston Uber Driver Accused Of Raping Drunk Passenger: Police

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