Lyft driver gave woman a Four Loko and massage for $400 — then assaulted her, Michigan cops say
By Josh Magness
Michigan police say 24-year-old Raheel Bin Hanif, a Lyft driver from Waterford Township, gave a female passenger a Four Loko and $400 for a massage. He assaulted her once she declined his request for sex for $1,000, police say.
Oakland County Sheriff's Office
It started with an offer for $400, police say.
Raheel Bin Hanif, a 24-year-old Lyft driver from Waterford Township, Michigan, told a female passenger that she could be that much richer if she agreed to let him give her a massage at a spa that he owns, police alleged to The New York Post. The woman agreed to the deal, police say, and Hanif told her to drink some of his Four Loko, which was already open, while they drove to the spa.
The Oakland County Sheriff's Office also told The New York Post that Habif said the woman would have to fill out a survey detailing how the massage felt for her.
The unidentified woman alerted the Oakland County Sheriff's office the following day, according to ClickOnDetroit. Authorities arrested him that same day, police say, and a subsequent investigation determined that Habif was suspected in a December 2017 case of sexual assault.
He faces three counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct. Sheriff Michael Bouchard told ClickOnDetroit that his deputies worked "quickly and methodically in order to find this victim the justice she deserves."
"I commend this victim for coming forward, as she may have brought closure for other victims as well," he said. "This is a reminder to review some of the newest safety features included in apps such as Uber and Lyft, which allow you to send your location to friends and family and call for emergency help quickly.
"Always use vigilance and if something sounds a bit strange, listen to your intuition."
Sheriff Bouchard added to WJBK that the woman might have trusted Hanif because of her past rides with him.
"She had a little bit of a rapport with him," he said, "so I guess she let her guard down."
Deputies now want anyone with information about the December 2017 assault to reach out to police, according to WJBK. Police say they couldn't obtain a warrant at the time because they lacked enough information.
Lyft spokeswoman Kate Margolis told The New York Post that Hanif was "immediately deactivated" from the ride-sharing company once news of the allegations broke.
“These allegations are deeply disturbing, and are completely unacceptable,” she said. “From day one, the safety of the Lyft community has been our number one priority.”
In Massachusetts, police say an Uber driver named Frederick Amfo sexually assaulted a passenger early April — then managed to flee the country because of a miscommunication that allowed him to leave police custody without first surrendering his passport.
“I don’t feel that I’ll ever have justice for what’s happened to me,” the woman told The Boston Herald. “But I hope this shines a light and it won’t happen in the future because of me coming forward and me releasing my name and putting a face behind this whole situation.”
