An Uber driver faces kidnapping charges

PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania – An Uber driver in Pittsburgh was arrested for kidnapping after being accused of trying to lock two women in his car.

Pittsburgh police spokesman Chris Togneri called CNN's driver Richard Lomotey, who faces two counts of kidnapping, illegal imprisonment and harassment. Lomotey has also been identified as an assistant professor on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania in Beaver, according to a school spokeswoman.

According to Pittsburgh police, two women reported taking an Uber with a driver on Saturday morning. The driver commented on his appearance and "did not follow the GPS instructions at the requested address".

Finally, the women told the police, the driver stopped, parked the car and said, "You're not going anywhere."

He tried to lock the doors, said the women, but one of them managed to open a door and escaped from the back seat, followed by the second woman, according to the police.

Police were able to identify Lomotey via the Uber app, Togneri said. He was quickly arrested. The court records indicate that a preliminary hearing in the case is scheduled for May 23rd.

"What has been described is unacceptable," said a spokesman for Uber in a statement. "Driver access to the application has been removed and we are ready to cooperate with law enforcement to support their investigation."

Kristen Doerschner, director of campus relations at Penn State Beaver, told CNN that the charges against Lomotey, an assistant professor of information science and technology, "are deeply troubling and we have revoked her." access to the campus. "

"It is obviously a criminal case and we can not say more," she added.

Lomotey did not immediately respond to a request for comment Sunday. CNN was not able to determine if he was represented by a lawyer.