NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A woman filed a lawsuit in the Manhattan Supreme Court on Tuesday against the rideshare app Via claiming she had a terrifying experience with a driver that ended with her exiting a moving vehicle on the Grand Central Parkway.
In response to the alleged Feb. 26, 2021 incident, Dinora Dendariarena said Via issued her a ride credit, the lawsuit said.
The trouble started when driver Lei Sun picked Dendariarena up from an address in East Harlem on her way to Queens. Dendariarena asked Sun to open the car’s windows due to the COVID-19 pandemic at which point he allegedly told her to “shut up,” the lawsuit said.
Dendariarena reported Sun to Via’s customer service during the trip and Via said they would reach out to him immediately, court documents said.
“Sun’s demeanor immediately changed and he became visibly angry,” the suit claimed.
The trip then allegedly took a scary turn as Dendariarena alleged Sun drove past the exit for her destination and pointed at the app to indicate he canceled her trip. Sun allegedly then continued to drive the wrong way to an unknown destination, court documents said.
The filing also said Sun reached in the backseat attempting to touch Dendariarena after canceling the ride. When Dendariarena attempted to exit the car, Sun allegedly sped up and locked the doors, according to the suit.
Sun eventually had to slow down because of traffic on the Grand Central Parkway. That’s when Dendariarena said she grabbed her things and jumped out of the vehicle as it was moving. Sun also exited the vehicle, abandoning it in the middle of the parkway and chased Dendariarena, the suit said.
Dendariarena started screaming for help and another driver let her in their car. Once out of sight from Sun, the driver then allegedly returned to his vehicle and fled, according to the filing.
She immediately called 911 and filed a police report the next day.
For all of the trouble, Via issued her a credit for the inconvenience, the suit said.
“It’s beyond insulting that they have so far refused to take responsibility for their actions,” Dendariarena’s lawyer, Tracey Brown, told The New York Post. “And offering a complimentary ride or a credit is not taking responsibility for the hiring of their drivers who assault and imprison passengers.”
Dendariarena is suing Via and the driver for claims including negligence, assault and false imprisonment.
“Via is deeply committed to rider and driver safety, and we take all incidents involving safety extremely seriously,” Via said in a statement to the Post. “Contrary to the claims made by the rider in this case, Via immediately responded to the rider’s complaints, conducted a thorough internal investigation that did not support the rider’s allegations, and has repeatedly reached out to the rider offering to cooperate and assist with any law enforcement investigation.”
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