GALVESTON COUNTY, Texas – A rideshare driver is behind bars after authorities said he ended a ride before dropping a woman off at her intended destination, but family members tracked her down when they learned she never arrived.
Sameh Chami, 49, of Houston, was arrested Wednesday after a warrant was issued by the Galveston County District Attorney’s Office for aggravated kidnapping.
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According to the Friendswood Police Department, officers got a report about a woman who was picked up back on June 28 for a pre-scheduled ride around 3 a.m.
The woman’s family told police they were aware she was taking a rideshare and were notified the ride ended at their home in Friendswood. However, when they noticed she wasn’t home, they checked her location and tracked it to a vacant business parking lot.
The relatives went to the parking lot, spotted the rideshare vehicle, and found the woman in the front seat. They were able to get her out of the car and took her home, where police said she told her family members she’d been drinking earlier in the evening and was falling in and out of sleep on the ride home.
At last check, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have Chami on a detainer due to his immigration status in addition to the aggravated kidnapping charges.