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Image: Official Seal of San Marcos, California; Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
An Uber driver has been arrested after a 21-year-old passenger reported that he sexually assaulted her during a ride through San Diego’s northern suburb of San Marcos, multiple San Diego news outlets reported yesterday.
The California Highway Patrol identified the driver as 50-year-old Ramon Ochoa Reyes. Investigators say the alleged assault happened around 2 a.m. Sept. 17 while Reyes was driving a silver 2022 Honda Accord westbound on State Route 78 near the Twin Oaks Valley Road off-ramp.
Passenger Reported Assault Hours Later
According to CHP, the passenger contacted authorities at about 2:30 p.m. that same day.
She told investigators that Reyes touched her inappropriately and sexually assaulted her during the Uber ride. CHP’s Oceanside Area office opened an investigation and worked with the agency’s Border Division Major Crimes Unit to identify and locate the driver.
Reyes was later arrested and booked into custody. He has since been released on bond and is scheduled to be arraigned Oct. 2.
CHP Asks Other Possible Victims to Come Forward
Because Reyes worked as a rideshare driver, investigators are asking anyone who may have had a similar encounter with him to contact CHP.
Authorities have not said that additional victims have been identified. The request is part of an effort to determine whether anyone else may have had a similar experience while riding with Reyes.
Anyone with information can contact the CHP Border Division Major Crimes Unit at 855-944-6300.
Uber Confirms Reyes Was a Driver
Local reporting identified Reyes as an Uber driver at the time of the alleged assault. The ride took place near Cal State University San Marcos (CSUSM), although CHP has not publicly disclosed where the passenger’s trip began or where she was headed.
The case is separate from the thousands of civil sexual assault lawsuits currently being pursued against Uber in federal court. Those lawsuits generally accuse the company of failing to do enough to protect passengers from sexual misconduct by drivers.
The San Marcos case is a criminal investigation involving one driver, but CHP’s request for other possible victims gives the case broader significance.
Rideshare Sexual Assault Remains a Wider Safety Issue
Uber has faced years of scrutiny over sexual assaults reported during rides.
Civil lawsuits have focused on issues such as driver screening, passenger warnings, app safety features and whether Uber responded adequately to known risks involving sexual misconduct.
The federal Uber sexual assault litigation is proceeding separately, with thousands of claims coordinated in multidistrict litigation. Individual cases can involve very different facts, but together they have increased scrutiny of how rideshare companies try to prevent and respond to passenger assaults.
Learn More About Uber Sexual Assault Lawsuits
Survivors across the country have filed lawsuits alleging sexual assault by Uber drivers and challenging the company’s safety practices.
Read our Uber Sexual Assault Lawsuit Guide for updates on the federal litigation, recent trials and legal options for survivors.
