Police charge man for harassing Syracuse University student during Uber ride

UPDATED: Dec. 12, 2017 at 9:10 p.m.

City police have arrested and charged a man for allegedly harassing and unlawfully imprisoning a Syracuse University student while giving her a ride as an Uber driver in mid-September.

In a press release on Monday, the Syracuse Police Department identified Ibrahim M. Aden, 34, as the man who picked up an SU student from a location on Ostrom Avenue as an Uber driver and, while driving, reached back and started rubbing the student’s leg and thigh area. Police said “it appears” Uber suspended Aden after the incident.

A Facebook post published in the “SU Orange Parents” group on Sept. 22 by Charlene Reese, an administrator of the “Syracuse University Parents 2021” group, said an SU freshman was returning home from a party when an Uber driver attempted to sexually assault her.

“My daughter was out with friends at a party and ended up taking an Uber home alone — not the best decision,” the Facebook post said. Reese posted the information on behalf of the student’s parents, who preferred to remain anonymous. “Needless to say the driver didn’t take her back to her dorm but took her to a parking lot on the outskirts of campus.”

While in the parking lot, Aden made “lewd comments” and the student eventually fled the car and reported the incident, police said on Monday.

Richard Helterline, an SPD spokesman, in an email on Monday confirmed Aden was involved in the case. Aden has been charged with harassment in the second degree and unlawful imprisonment in the second degree, in relation to the Uber incident.

The ride-hailing company removed the driver’s access to the Uber app and cooperated with local authorities during the investigation, a company spokesperson said in September.

University crime logs show a sex offense was reported to the Department of Public Safety on Sept. 17 and turned over to SPD. The DPS case ID used in that incident was the same ID used for SPD’s Uber driver investigation, Helterline said.

The sex offense was reported to DPS at 2:41 a.m. from Sadler Hall, at 1000 Irving Ave., crime logs show.

Aden has also been charged with sexual abuse in the first degree for allegedly unzipping his pants, while working as a taxi cab driver in late October, and grabbing a 22-year-old woman passenger and forcing her hand toward his lap.

The victim, who was offered a free ride by Aden in the 1200 block of West Fayette Street, demanded he stop the car and she eventually fled the scene. 

After investigating both incidents, SPD’s Abused Persons unit arrested and charged Aden on Dec. 7. No injuries were reported in either case, police said. 

“It appears that Aden was suspended by Uber after the initial incident, and was then employed by Yellow Taxi Company during the second incident. Aden was later lodged at the Onondaga County Justice Center,” Helterline said in the press release Monday.

This post has been updated with appropriate style.