Man Accused Of Raping Woman He Picked Up From Airport After Posing As Uber Driver

A Florida man posing as a ride-share driver has been accused of raping a 28-year-old woman he picked up from Miami International Airport.

Fernando Avila Hernandez, also 28, allegedly raped the unidentified victim, a native of Colombia, after she flew in from Salt Lake City on March 29. The woman had an immigration hearing the next morning and was looking for a cab to her hotel in Miramar when Hernandez, pretending to be an Uber driver, took her to a parking lot and sexually assaulted her, prosecutors said, as reported by New York Post.

The accused appeared in court Thursday and was charged with two counts of sexual battery on a victim 18 years or older and one count of touch or strike battery, according to court records.

During the journey, Hernandez requested the victim to come to the front seat and help him with directions. The woman, who was unfamiliar with how Uber functions in the U.S., “did not think anything of it because since Uber is not officially allowed in Colombia; Uber drivers sit their passengers in the front so as to not alert authorities,” the affidavit said.

When the victim approached her hotel, she reportedly offered to pay by credit card, but Hernandez insisted he needed cash. He then allegedly offered her $500 for sex, which she declined saying she was not a sex worker. Hernandez is then said to have demanded $300 for the ride but the victim did not have cash.

Hernandez reportedly drove her to a parking lot behind a nearby restaurant, where the victim was sexually assaulted, and then dropped her back at the hotel, officials said. The woman alerted the hotel staff who reported it to the police.

The man was arrested after cops identified him from surveillance footage in connection with an unrelated incident.

Meanwhile, Uber confirmed to NBC News on Thursday that Hernandez has not worked with the company since April 2021 and was not authorized to pick up passengers for them.

Hernandez's lawyer alleged that the victim's rape claim was to get immigration protection after being accused of entering the US without documents. "If a person claims that they [sic] victim of a crime, then they get immigration protection, potentially even the possibility of remaining in the United States for a long time or indefinitely," the lawyer said. "I think it’s clear that was her motivation," he added, as reported by CBS Miami.

However, Eric Linder, the prosecutor, defended saying that the argument was baseless as he (the defendant's lawyer) doesn’t know the results of any of her hearings with ICE were," Linder said.