Pregnant Lyft Driver Stabbed To Death By Passenger Who Stole Vehicle

A 39-year-old pregnant Lyft driver was stabbed to death by a passenger Sunday in Tempe, Arizona. The accused stole her vehicle and fled the scene before he was arrested.

The victim was idnetified as Kristina Howato. She was responding to a ride request by the 20-year-old accused, Fabian Durazo, around 1 a.m. MST (3 a.m. EST) Sunday. She picked him up and drove to an apartment half-mile away, outside which Durazo brutally stabbed her to death, ABC-affiliate KNXV reported.

The incident came to light when Tempe police received reports about a woman screaming in the apartment’s parking area. Upon arriving at the scene around 1:30 a.m. MST, police found Howato with several wounds on her body, and rushed her to a local hospital, where she died. Her unborn baby was also pronounced dead. She was in her third trimester of pregnancy, and already had two children, aged 2 and 4.

Durazo had already fled the scene with the stolen SUV before the police showed up. But using the GPS tracking system equipped in the vehicle, he was found and arrested near the California state line Sunday afternoon.

Police said Durazo was not under the influence of alcohol and preliminary search revealed no previous contacts between Durazo and Howato, U.S News reported.

“Throughout our careers as officers, we have incidents that really, really touch our hearts and stay with you throughout your careers," Sgt. Ron Elcock told a news conference. "This is definitely one of those incidents that really is going to affect the police department for a long time."

Lyft also issued a statement, saying the company was deeply saddened by the incident, and that it was fully cooperating in the investigation.

“We were shocked and deeply saddened to learn of this tragedy, and our thoughts are with the family and friends of the victims. The safety of the Lyft community is our top priority.” KNXV reported, referring to the statement issued by Lyft. “The passenger's account has been permanently deactivated and we are actively assisting law enforcement with their investigation.”

The accused admitted to the killing the pregnant woman, and faced charges of first-degree murder, theft of a vehicle, armed robbery and kidnapping, AZ Central reported.